Uninspired

That's basically how I've been feeling about my blogging and, to a lesser extent, my running. But I'm going to try to stick with it (blogging and running) and see what happens.

Did the Art Museum loop yesterday all by my lonesome... ran it last weekend with Stacey and it was much more fun. The run itself was okay - weather was good and I felt decent. My splits were okay (9:07, 9:05; 8:53, 8:53; 8:40; 8:44; 8:46; 8:46). I don't want to be a speed whore, but it's hard not to be, especially with the company I keep. I don't know that I'll ever regain the speed I had a year ago and, really, I'm not sure how much I care about it. Of course I care, but not to the point where I'm willing to put in the work necessary to get there.

I think the hardest part for me right now is that I'm a lonely runner. I am fine running by myself during the week, but I miss having someone to chat to and commiserate with during those long runs.

So, that's where I am for now. Still running, but with less enthusiasm than I'd like. We'll see what happens.

Beat the Clock

First and foremost.... Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. No presents, no religious pretense.... just good food and lots of it. I was lucky enough this year to be invited to Steve's family friend's home for the holiday. Of course I couldn't show up empty handed, so I offered to make and bring a pecan pie - my momma's recipe.

The pie takes about 50-55 minutes to bake, giving me the perfect window to fit in a run. Of course, this then puts a bit of pressure on me to make sure I get back in time to ensure the pie isn't overcooked. My usual West Philly loop takes me about 45 - 47 minutes, giving me adequate cushion in case I didn't have a good run.

Luckily, I felt good throughout the run and made it back in just under 45 minutes, allowing for a nice cool down walk around the block before heading back into the kitchen to retrieve my perfectly cooked pecan pie.

South Street Bridge sign was up announcing its closure on or around December 8th - that's gonna suck.

Gym Rat

">

I went looking for a picture of a hamster wheel and found this video, which is kind of silly and stupid, but made me laugh, so I'm sharing it for what it's worth.

All of that is a rather lengthy intro to what will be a brief post about my runs this week. As you may have already guessed, I did all three runs on the treadmill. I ran four miles on Tuesday, four and a half on Thursday, and a grueling nine and a quarter treddy-miles on Saturday. As much as I hate the treadmill, I hate the wind even more, so I suffered for the 9+ miles and called it a week.

Untitled

I'm having trouble getting this entry started. Not sure where I want to begin or end and I only have a vague sense of what I want to say in between. My body is tired from running the Tinicum figure eight a few hours ago.

My runs earlier in the week were very rushed... Wednesday's run was through the dark and rainy streets of West Philly. A much needed stress reliever run... one where I just wanted to keep going, but I had things to do and was a bit worried about slipping on wet leaves or tripping over some uneven pavement, so I cut it short. And I couldn't find my watch. My best guess was that I ran somewhere around three and a half miles.

Friday was, again, a beat the clock run. I had hopes of running at Ridley Creek State Park as I made my way home, but I soon realized that I didn't have nearly enough daylight minutes left, so I opted for East Goshen Township Park, which is about a half mile down the road from where I work. There is a paved loop around the west side of the park that is about a mile long. I was glad to have my iPod, as four loops around that thing was not the most exciting run ever. But, hey, at least I got some sort of run in.

This morning, I had designs on the Art Museum, but given that I was in West Philly and my running shoes were in Prospect Park, I ended up running Tinicum again... and, really, I was happy to be there. It was nice too, not to be constrained by waning daylight or anything else pressing upon me (except for the usual Sunday chores).

I'm getting better at being nice to myself when I run. I am doing a better job of just letting myself relax and not worry about speed. I run. I push it sometimes. I take it easy other times. I walk if I want to and I don't worry about it. My only goal for today was to do the figure eight loop and to run for at least eighty minutes. Done. My body is tired, but in a good way.... and with so few remaining glorious autumn mornings, I am glad I got out there.

Steady as She Goes

The good news is, I'm getting some consistency back in my running. The bad news is... I'm S.L.O.W. I know, I keep saying I'm not going to obsess over that anymore and I'm trying not to, truly I am.

So this week, I've run the usual four or so miles twice during the week. Friday I woke up obscenely early and made it to the gym when it opened at 5am to get a treadmill run in. I've been helping Amy move into her new house, so an after-work run was not in the cards. I miss working out in the morning. I miss the familiar faces, yes, even the annoying ones. Yes, I even miss Bruce.

This weekend, I had a wedding on Saturday evening so I wisely chose to get my long run in on Saturday morning. I set out to do a Seebeka loop, but ended up doing the whole figure eight loop around Darby Lake. Again... it was pretty slow going... probably averaging around nine minute miles, but I was really glad just to get the miles.

I love Tinicum. I know I've said it before and I will likely say it again. I love that I see more members of other species than I do of my own. I am fortunate to have that as my backyard and will be sad when the day comes when it is no longer so easily accessible.

So slowly I'm starting to settle back into some sort of running routine. Next week, I'll likely revive some of the old West Philly routes.