Saturday, and not running

We now have a foot of snow. The road hasn't been plowed, so I am not going to attempt to go into town. I can't run here—I can barely walk through the snow, and the ground is slippery and wet. So, no long run this weekend. I think Surf City is pretty well out of the question at this point. I was really counting on being able to do ten miles this weekend. Oh well, I can't do anything about the weather!

Tuesday

There is four inches of snow on the ground, so I couldn't run around the house. I had intended to use my trampoline for 30 minutes today in lieu of running, but instead spent my half-hour wrestling with my generator, which did not want to produce electricity, and scraping snow off the solar panels. Oh well, it was some physical effort anyway.

Week 8: Four miles

1:01 hours, 38 laps, 30:60 second run/walk ratio

I had a really good run today, despite the weather—it was cold and drizzly, then started snowing at about lap 23. I had originally planned to drive into town, but with the cold and wind I decided to just run around the house. I started out with the 1:1 lap ratio, but, as on Thursday, decided after three laps to switch to running about halfway and walking the rest of the way. So it wasn't exactly 30:60, but close enough. I ran the first 19 laps clockwise, and the second 19 counter-clockwise.

What really made it enjoyable was that I dug out my iPod shuffle and loaded it up with a couple of audiobooks, and listened to the first three parts of Pema Chodron's Getting Unstuck while I ran. It was very interesting and pleasant and kept my mind occupied while my body ran around and around. Yes, it's a bit ironic to be using a book about mindfulness and being in the present moment to keep myself distracted while I run. Hm. There was a short guided meditation in the middle where we were to relax and listen to all the sounds around us: I listened to the wind and my footsteps and my breath as I ran.

But even before I started running, I was using mindfulness to feel that running in the rain was going to be an interesting experience, rather than labeling it as bad and being attached to having good weather to run in. And I was actually kind of delighted when it started to snow, watching the white snowflakes falling all around, and feeling the cold little drops on my hands. I enjoyed the experience of being outdoors in the winter while I ran today.

After Getting Unstuck, I also have the Dalai Lama's The Art of Happiness to listen to. And then I suppose I'll have to get some more audiobooks to listen to while I run!

Thursday 19 laps

29:37 minutes, 1/2:1/2 lap run/walk ratio

I did my first three laps as usual, walk:run:walk, then I decided to try shortening the interval and running about half a lap, then walking the rest of the way, just to see if it made any difference in my time, and boy, I guess it did! I ran counterclockwise today—the "uphill" direction—and wasn't feeling particularly fast (my first complete running lap was a slow 1:27), and still managed to finish 19 laps in under 30 minutes! I guess I really should be doing 30:60 second run/walk intervals on my long runs. Although I think I'll stick to 1:1 laps for my midweek runs generally, and 1:2 for the shorter long runs, just to keep my endurance up.

I did go ahead and make reservations at the Hotel Huntington Beach for Surf City. I went to their website, just to see what their hotel was like and check prices without the "Surf City" discount, and they had king rooms for $87! That's cheaper than the $95 it said on the Surf City website! So I went ahead and reserved a room for Saturday and Sunday nights.

It's supposed to be really cold this weekend—highs in the 40s on Saturday—but no rain or snow until Monday or so. Brr! I hope it stays dry!

Tuesday 19 laps

31:00 minutes, 1:1 lap run/walk ratio

I'm back! Decided to give it another go, and see if I can get back on track for Surf City. It was cold out there, but it felt good to get my circulation going, and I didn't seem to lose any time over the weeks of being sick. My cough is mostly gone—I'm still having the occasional bout of coughing, but not nearly as bad as before. Another week, at most, should see it totally gone, I think. I don't think it would have really stopped me from running anyway, unless I started coughing in the middle of a run, but I was sleeping 12 hours or more a night and just not having time to do my runs. Anyway, I feel better now, and am not quite ready to give up on Surf City yet.

I do need to make hotel reservations soon. I finally decided that the hotels within walking distance of the start/finish line were just too expensive (and the host hotel is sold out already anyway), so I'm going for the Hotel Huntington Beach, six miles from the start, and only $95 a night. I'll be able to stay two nights there for less than the price of one night at Hyatt Regency! I'll just have to drive to the start in the morning, or take a cab or something. I'll figure it out.

Still coughing

Well, obviously, my training is not going well at all. I haven't run in a couple of weeks, and I'm not going to run today, either. I'm still coughing—my cold seems to be gone, but I can't get rid of this cough. I feel pretty good, most of the time, but I'm sleeping a lot, which interferes with me getting up in time to do my runs before work and whatever else I have scheduled.

I keep thinking about canceling Surf City... but then, I think, I still have time to get ready if I just get back on track and don't miss any more runs! I might not be able to match my time in Long Beach, but I'm pretty sure I can still finish. Then there's the hotel... the main hotel is already full, and the only other one that appears to be within walking distance of the start/finish is $250 a night... I've been thinking of just staying overnight, driving down Saturday in time to pick up my race packet, then home Sunday after the race. Huntington Beach is about a three hour drive from here, so it's doable. The main problem would be the check-out time—I won't be finishing the half marathon until around 11:30, so if check-out time is noon, I've got half an hour to get back to the hotel, shower and pack and check out. Also doable, but a bit close. Maybe I can get a late check-out? Or maybe just bite the bullet and pay for two nights.

I need to make a hotel reservation soon, though, if I'm still even considering doing the race. Sigh. I don't want to give up on it, but it's getting harder by the day. I just wish I could get rid of this darn cough! It's been hanging on for weeks.

Well, I'll give it a few more weeks and see if I can get myself back into training.