The End of R and R

We learn from our mistakes. After the marathon, I hopped on the "too-much-too-soon" train and quickly derailed my running. I slipped into a little PMD (post-marathon depression), watched as my prior speed and endurance slipped away, and got left behind a bit by my training group.

Then about a week ago, I had a little surgical procedure to remove a lesion on the back of my leg and had to take a doctor-ordered week off from any type of exercise for fear of tearing any of my four stitches and bleeding out (well maybe not bleeding OUT, but bleeding, nonetheless).

That week coincided with the week before the Wilma Rudolph 5K and 10K, a race put on my my running club for which I was the registration chairperson. The week of rest couldn't have come at a better time! I spent the hours I would normally have spent running or lifting weights entering the data of the 200+ runners on a spread sheet, managing entry forms and fees, picking up donations, and working on a whole bunch of race bags. (If you've never seen a race from the other side, it's AMAZING how much work goes into one!) The race took over my life for one week, so even though I couldn't run, running was still on the forefront of my days.

On Friday morning, I got my stitches out and immediately went to the Y, since it was about 92 degrees outside. I warmed up and decided to do one of Jeff Galloway's Magic Miles. A magic mile is when, every few months, you test yourself to see how fast you can run a mile. The last time I'd done this was about 9 months ago on an outdoor flat track. I ran it in 8:40. On the treadmill after one week of nonstop rest, I ran it in 8:38. Yay! It felt like a good sign. I can put all that marathon stuff behind me and move forward now.

So, what's next, running-wise?? A LOT.

*I'm doing a 5K this coming Saturday in honor of my two-year running anniversary. (It's sometime in June, I wish I had the exact date of those first tentative jogging steps on the treadmill at the Y....)

*I'm running the R-3 Anniversary 5K for the 3rd year in a row on August 22. It was my very first race.

*On June 29, half-marathon training starts for the Music City Half-Marathon, on the course where I got my half-marathon PR in March.

*On July 11-12, I take course to become a RRCA Certified Running Coach.

*On July 13 (tentatively), I start a JOB (with pay and everything!) at the YMCA coaching a half-marathon beginners team in a 16-week program for a race on November 7.

*On August 10, I start coaching the Couch to 5K group for a race on November 7.

*On August 17, MARATHON training officially begins.

*Music City Half-Marathon on October 18.

*Clarksville Half-Marathon on November 7.

*St. Jude Memphis Marathon December 5.

The other day, a friend in my running group who is a stay-at-home mom like me joked, "Running is my job." Yep, me, too. Part hobby, part job, part obsession....