Thursday, February 16, 2012

I've Been Robbed!


Something very dear to me, something I have worked very hard for, has been stolen from me.  I am not for sure when it happened, but only now have I become aware of the theft.  At some point this fall or winter, someone or something has completely stolen my speed!

Early this winter, I guess I had started to notice a lack of speed.  I was running as hard as I felt comfortable and I was only pulling 7:30 miles.  At the time, I had chalked it up to the colder temps and extra clothing, but it was still very upsetting.  I also considered that I had taken a very nonchalant attitude towards working out as I did not have any upcoming races to prepare for.  But recently, I have taken a renewed enthusiasm towards working out hard.  I have added the extra miles running over lunch, I have been going to basketball, and I have been doing my weight training with more intensity.  However, on Monday during my lunchtime run I had pushed myself pretty hard, but my time was 22:50 for an almost exact 3 mile run.  Immediately, I thought that I had misread the mileage of my run, or taken the wrong route, or anything other than the fact that I had just averaged 7:37 over a 3 mile run!  Seriously, that is a slower pace than my very first 5K more than 2 years ago.  Yesterday, I ran over lunch again and it was even worse.  I had purposely taken things a bit slower as I had done my leg workout that morning, but I was almost a full minute slower than Monday.  Finally, this morning, I ran my 5 mile route and huffing and puffing to get in under 8:00 per mile.

I understand that my legs have been working harder this week and the extra miles are taking their toll, but for the first time in a very long time, I felt SLOW!  But still I find myself attempting rationalize my lack of speed, coming up with excuses for my slow pace.  The real problem is that I don't want to be slow.  I want to be fast!  I want to run a faster half-marathon this year, I would love to run a sub-20 minute 5K.  But if I keep running at these rates, I will be lucky to even beat my first 5K time!

I don't know who stole my speed, but I want it back...immediately...please?!

No comments:

Post a Comment