I’m still out there running, I just haven’t found it very inspiring.

Week 3
Monday (1/1): 5.1 mi, treadmill, skating
Tuesday: 5.6 mi, treadmill hill workout
Wednesday: 6.6 mi, treadmill
Thursday: 6 mi, treadmill
Friday: rest
Saturday: 6.2 mi, road (Minnesota Point)
Sunday: 13.1 mi, paved trail (Lakewalk)
Total: 42.6 mi

It was really cold for most of the week, so I slogged away on the treadmill. I was so happy I practically cried when I was able to run outside. I think I did a bit of strength training that week but can’t remember. I haven’t been doing a great job of strength training lately – typical me.

Monday (1/8): 5.4 mi, paved trail (Lakewalk)
Tuesday: 7.1 mi, road & paved trail (Lakewalk and Minnesota Point)
Wednesday: rest (travel)
Thursday: 2.5 mi, treadmill hill workout
Friday: 6.3 mi, treadmill
Saturday: 8.6 mi, treadmill (split into 5.1 mi & 3.5 mi)
Sunday: 13.1 mi, trail (8, Hartley) and treadmill (5.1)
Total: 43 mi

This week was a bit odd. Thursday’s treadmill workout was going along smoothly (I was doing hills starting at I think 5% grade), and then the treadmill completely shut off. I thought I’d broken it. It turned out the power cord just got pinched under the treadmill deck. That was a relief. I thought I’d killed it by trying to run it at a 7% grade, which would have been very annoying since it’s designed to operate there.

Saturday I intended to run outside for the second half of my workout, but when I went downstairs to get on the treadmill, I found the breaker had been tripped. After fixing that, we realized that the breaker had been tripped by the furnace, which was not operating properly. Running outside in frigid temps, then returning to a house without a functioning furnace, seemed like a stupid idea.

Trying to get 8 miles at Hartley in winter is a giant pain in the butt, FYI. I do not recommend it.

Monday (1/15): 6 mi, treadmill
Tuesday: rest (travel)
Wednesday: 6 mi, treadmill
Thursday: 8.1 mi, road (Minnesota Point)
Friday: 4.2 mi, paved trail (Lakewalk), fartlek workout
Saturday: 8.7 mi, trail (Bagley & Hartley)
Sunday: 15.2 mi, road/trail (Minnesota Point & Lakewalk)
Total: 48.1 mi

I realized that if I am planning on running 50 miles in a day this spring (I’m still mentally committed to Zumbro, just not financially committed yet!), I had better start running 50 miles in a week. That’s hard to do with so many treadmill miles due to weather, but I’m getting closer.

My fartlek workout confirmed that I have no speed in my legs right now. Yikes. I did get done with plenty of time to get dinner before the men’s hockey game though. Friday and Saturday were both really nice days, temperature-wise. I think Saturday it might have even gotten up to 40F!

The 15 mile run went well, overall. I ran 9 miles (up and down Minnesota Point), stopped at my car for a few minutes and ate & drank (I kept my watch running), and then continued for the next 6 on the Lakewalk. When it’s cold, that works better than carrying a water bottle and gels with me, since both tend to solidify. After I got going again, I was cold for a little while due to my damp gloves and hoodie, but I did manage to warm up again once I was out of the worst of the wind and settled into a rhythm.

Monday: 6.3 mi, treadmill
Tuesday: 4.6 mi, treadmill hill workout
Wednesday: 7 mi, paved trail (Lakewalk)
Thursday: rest (travel)
Friday: 10.2 mi, paved trail (Lakewalk)
Saturday: 6.2 mi, trail (Western Waterfront)
Sunday: 15.1 mi, trail & road (Munger Trail and Hwy 210)
Total: 49.5

I meant to do 51 miles this past week but I failed. I’m getting a little mentally worn down lately due to the weather and the lack of sunlight in the evenings (it’s getting better, but I am tired of running in the dark). I’ve been slacking on strength workouts as I’m either too cold to do them when I’m done running outside, or I’m starting my treadmill workouts so late that it’s dinnertime when I’m done running.

Friday’s workout was a welcome change. I’d worked a long day on Thursday (including travel), so I was able to start my workout early, and I switched up my 10 mile day (originally that was going to be Saturday). It was around 45F when I started and it felt so incredibly easy. I finished under a 12 minute pace, which was surprising since it felt so effortless. I did push a little at the end because I was happy to be running a double digit run at a sub-12 minute pace; usually that’s something I can only do in the spring and fall. I can’t run fast in the winter, due to the cumbersome layers and the wind and the terrain. The Lakewalk was mostly clear and I had light layers on so I felt weightless. I did have to stop after only a mile of running in order to go pee at the Super One, and I stopped my watch when I was inside the store, but I am still claiming that overall pace! It was only one mile in, it’s not like I took a break halfway.

Saturday’s workout was ok. It wasn’t as much fun, and I was reduced to a walk a couple times due to ice on the trail, but I got through it. I realized that I needed to reduce my planned mileage (7 mi) because I was going to be over my weekly goal of 51 miles, once I added in the planned 17 miles for Sunday. Well, spoiler alert, Sunday’s run was the opposite of Friday’s: cold, with soft-ish snow on the trail, and labored. I ran 11 miles on the Munger Trail before I stopped for a few minutes to eat and drink (I did not stop my watch for this!), switched out my gloves, and intended to run another 6 miles on the road. I realized 2 miles down the road that it wasn’t going to happen. I was too beat up from the snowy running, the sun was going down and I had a headlamp but no safety vest, I was bleeding (just a small spot under my nose that got irritated from the cold temps and the snot), I had menstrual cramps, and I was overall just miserable and grumpy. I’m not super thrilled about missing those extra 2 miles, since this upcoming week is likely to be a cutback week due to cold temps (I do NOT know how I can get in a 17 miler this weekend with temps in the single digits – it just seems to be too much of a toll on me mentally), but I also know it’s not that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things.

I’ve still got my eyes on the prize with Zumbro, but it is sometimes hard to fathom it. January is almost over, which helps, and we’ve had some nice days, which also helps, but I’m getting to the point where I’m tired of being cold all the time. I had to walk about half a mile to a meeting this morning and it was 0F, maybe, and I haven’t recovered yet! And now I get to go home, turn on the treadmill, and try to grind out some miles. It’s tough to see the big picture when I’m dragging after 15 miles, or when 7 miles feels like an eternity, but I also know a race is different. It’s unlikely to be as cold (although the year I did Zumbro it was in the teens overnight), and I’ll have aid stations with warm food, and the sun will be out longer, but it’s still a staggering prospect when I’m struggling at significantly shorter distances. The silver lining is that my legs are feeling great, I don’t have much soreness the following day after a long run, and I’m still able to function in the evenings after completing the longer runs. Physically, I’m doing well. Mentally — well, let’s just try to finish out January and February.