Re-focused

It's a long, hard road and it's going to have its bumps; there are going to be times when you fall and times when you don't feel like going on anymore, times when you're just crazy tired but it takes focusing on that one step you're taking. That's what I'm trying to do with the marathon; I don't think about the miles that are coming down the road, I don't think about the mile I'm on right now, I don't think about the miles I've already covered. I think about what I'm doing right now, just being lost in the moment.
- Ryan Hall on running a marathon

My sentiments exactly Ryan Hall.

After a rocky few weeks, I'm back and focused. I'm looking forward to returning to racing this weekend (trail race) and next weekend (Beach to Bay Marathon Relay). I know to most people, I race a lot. But, I always find there is a correlation between when I have consecutive weeks of not racing and losing complete focus, which has happened to me somewhat the past 3 weeks. I'm like a rabbit who constantly needs a carrot dangled in front of her face to stay focused, which also would explain why I get bored easily (evident in many areas of my life - i.e. several job changes, moves, etc). I'm always looking for that next challenge.

I was ready to throw in the towel the beginning of last week with San Diego. I wasn't hitting my workouts, and each bad workout would leave me more and more frustrated. What I needed was a break. I took two complete rest days last week on Thursday and Friday, and in turn feel much better. I was able to get in my long run Saturday without any foot pain, and follow up with a strong run on Sunday. Today's speed work felt great. The combo of ice and change of shoes seems to be helping my foot issues, as I've not had pain after my workouts.

One of the most valuable things I have learned is that I need recovery weeks every 3-4 weeks. I cannot ramp up over and over again, week by week, until race day and expect to reach the start line not fatigued and over trained. You have got to pull back and rest to become stronger. I will always have to pull myself back and not overdo it. The only way that I will be successful at this is by holding myself accountable.

After spending a great weekend with family in from out of town, one important thing that I am learning is that people come first. We usually don't go out on weeknights (or weekends really) so that I can be bed by 9 pm sharp to get enough sleep for my morning run - nothing was allowed to break this routine.

But this past weekend was another story - we were having a lot of fun with out-of-state family. As it got later and later Friday and Saturday nights, I started to feel more and more anxious about the situation - thinking if I don't get to bed now, there's no way I'll get enough sleep to get up and run. But, you know what - I reminded myself that there is nothing more important than family, and choose to stop being so anxious about such a silly thing. I even managed to get up early and get my runs in (maybe I don't need as much sleep as I thought!). Totally worth it, and it was a great weekend.

Saturday night on 6th Street in Austin

Ryan Hall on running a marathon