running those miles

I know it has been awhile since my last post, but to be honest not a whole lot has happened since then that has been post-worthy – until yesterday!  I ran 10.9k, which translates to 6.8 miles (I say I ran it in k’s because I cannot figure out how to switch my fitness watch to miles…I’m going to be a metric whiz before all this is over).  I ran five miles for the first time in the Cinco de Miler race in May and then just over five miles again about a week ago.  So the 6.8 is at least 1.5 miles farther than I’ve ever ran before (ran in about 1:07, with just under 1:03 for the 10k portion, so not too fast, but for now I will take it).  And let's not forget - the fact that I can even run farther than one mile is almost a miracle in itself.  

One thing I have noticed about running long distances – aside from the fact that I never thought I would be running them – is that it is extremely mental.  I didn’t realize how much ground I could cover (for those in Chicago – it was (roughly) from my apartment north of Belmont, over to the Lake Shore path, south to North Ave, and then back up through the park) to only go that distance (not only as in, ‘I only ran 6.8 miles,’ but only as in, ‘how can that amount of ground only amount to that far’).  I did want to stop along the way, but made myself keep going.  I didn’t want to stop because I was tired I don’t think, but I definitely at some points was thinking I should be walking instead.  That is definitely one of the differences between the me from now and the me from February – the old me would have stopped to walk, but this me kept right on running.  

The strange thing was as I finished, I wasn’t really tired and felt like I could have kept going (but it definitely caught up with me later when I fell asleep at 8:30pm last night).  Which gives me confidence that come September I will be able to complete the half marathon without too many issues (granted I ever remember to sign up!), although probably rather slowly.  First time isn’t for time though, right? :) Although as for running this distance after swimming the better part of a mile and biking 25 miles – we’ll see how that goes (sooner than I’d like to admit!).  

Other training is going well.  Given what happened in the ITU sprint I am still concerned with the swim for the Chicago Tri, but am working on it.  My biggest concern is that we have yet to get in the lake as we’ve been busy lately (and not that this is an excuse, but it is not so easy to get all the way down to Ohio Street Beach).  This will change by Saturday at the latest, though, as we have a training clinic there then.  After this, my goal is to go at least once, if not twice a week, until race day.  That should at least give me four or five times in the lake prior to race day, which will be better than the big fat zero I had before.  

We also need to be better about biking.  Hopefully we are better about getting in some long rides in the next couple of weeks before race day.  I am thinking Saturday and Sunday afternoons are going to be prime for this.