I hate it.
I am not fast. I have never been fast nor have I really pretended that I am. Sure, there have been some seemingly speedy times on my HRM, but they generally correspond with going downhill. The only time I ever felt fast was last spring when I convinced my friend to run all out at the end of a tempo run to concentrate on something other than some personal stuff. But that was more because I was being a good friend than it being anything I could sustain in the long run.
Dropping down from being a slow runner to an even slower runner is hard. Not so much physically. It's actually kind of nice to just plod along. But, mentally, it's the pits. As much as I thought I'd accepted the slow runner in me I haven't completely. She's still there and I really want her to go away. That's going to take some work. And it's work that I'm not willing to do right now.
My goals are small. Run for an hour. Run 4 days a week. For now I'm just working on getting out the door.
I think that it is pretty typical for a runner to go through a slump every now and then. I have had slumps on numerous occasions and I have always come back a stronger runner because of it. Don't let it get to you. You will get your groove back before you know it.
ReplyDeleteThat's right... just get out the door and move your bod. Find the enjoyment again... forget the time for now. I love your honesty :)
ReplyDeleteI'm going through a slump too. And I have a half marathon at the end of this month.
ReplyDeleteJust take one day at a time. Remind yourself why you run. What makes you happy when you run. And probably recreate that "moment" ???
For me, my mojo came back when I channeled the time I was too injured to run. When you cant run there is nothing more you want. Sometimes you need to get a running start and jump into it again- beginning with a day or so of rest. Your batteries will recharge- they always do. The ebb and flow of running life makes for some awesome strides and some terrible schlepping. But the bad makes the good look even better. I tell myself fake it until you make it and so far its worked! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI hear ya. If this hip thing ever stops bugging me, I'll be running with my watch for time, and not calculating distance for a while. I just don't want to know how slow I am now.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to shift gears. I'm running a half in a few weeks and for the first time in a long while have no time goal. I'm just going to run with my friends and enjoy the day. It's nice to take a break from the expectations.
ReplyDelete