Getting back with the program and shaking off the grizzly

Probably if you are a devotee of any sport, you have had good times and bad times.  Maybe your training plans got derailed at some point.  Maybe life intervened.  Maybe you were injured.

I have to say that other than my running fallow period last spring, I really have been lucky for the most part.  Usually, I don't get sick very often.  I have yet to be injured in any significant way (I did once have the blackened toenail thing).  Generally, I am pretty consistent with my training plans.

Except for the past month.

The past month was sick and tired and not good.  If I had to sum it up, I think the one word that I would use is frustrating.  And now that I am trying to get back in the swing of things, I feel like I am starting from scratch.  Nothing feels right.  My abs have seemingly disappeared.  My legs appear to get all of 2 centimeters off the ground when I run.  I feel like I have gained 800 pounds in the last month.  That's right.  I went from being somewhat zaftig to adding the weight of a grizzly bear, all between Thanksgiving and now.  This is not an exaggeration.  Okay, perhaps it's more like 5-10 pounds.

Grizzly or no, getting back into the swing of things is proving difficult.  However, I am gradually getting back into the swing of things.  Which is the point.  Because no matter how much I whine about my running, it's weird how the whining seems to have little to no effect.  Somehow, though, the training works.

Today was speedwork.  I'm not going to lie: I was worried.  It was similar to what I did last time around, mostly because I am basically using the same plan as last time around.  However, there was a little less and more at the slower of the two speeds (10:30 mile split versus 10:00 mile split).  It's still somewhat early in this training plan.  I decided to go to the treadmill, since it's easier to ensure that you stay at pace, I find, when a treadmill is involved.

Also, I wore my Half Fanatics singlet, which arrived last week.  On the one hand, I was a bit embarrassed since I feel like I am the size of a grizzly bear plus a zaftig person and I don't think I look like someone who ran an impressive, singlet-deserving number of half-marathons.  On the other hand, I was all like, 'I'VE RUN AN IMPRESSIVE NUMBER OF HALF-MARATHONS AND HAVE THE SINGLET TO PROVE IT!'  This mindset did help a bit.  Although I have to say that getting through tonight's workout was less difficult than I thought it would be.

And that is the point: workouts are probably not as bad as I am anticipating.  Even if they are, they will be over soon.  And the only way ever to get better at them is to keep on training.

I would give myself encouragement by saying something like there is only one half to go, except that I got talked in to signing up for another half at the end of June.  So maybe I am worthy of this singlet after all.

Oh, the other thing that I am doing is cross-training.  I found a not-too-hard plan thanks to Runner's World that I can do in the comfort of my home.  Except that skipping and ab-work is involved, neither of which are particularly comfortable.  Skipping is really hard!  How did I not notice this when I was a kid?