Where to begin this week? Well, I'll start with my week's running. I got in 23 miles this week. Nothing huge, but it was a good week. My runstreak is currently at 705 days, and I'm over 100 miles for the month.
I did run a virtual race this week. I ran the 131 Events Halloween Brew Ha Ha on Saturday. The weather was great, and I had originally thought of running a longer run and counting the first 5K for the race. I decided instead to run a strong 5K and see how it went. I finished in just over 30 minutes, but my last mile was a 9:14 so I'm super happy!!
This brings me to my other two thoughts for the week. First is running pace. Be it because I've been in the running scene for so long, or just the fact that I'm older, my view on pace has changed over the last year or so. I used to feel that if I wasn't running under 10 minutes a mile, I wasn't really running. Runners are supposed to be fast...but let's be real, "fast" is a relative term! Lately my pace for training runs has ranged between 10:45 and 12:05. In the past this would have really bothered me, but as I've gotten older I realized some things. The most important thing is I'm out there running! So many people will never get out there and try. Just being out there is a win! Also, yesterday showed me that I can still run pretty fast, heck most every race I run I'm sub-10 min per mile, I'm REALLY happy with that. It makes me think of all the podcasts I've listened to that tell you to slow down to race faster, or the 80/20 rule, and that I may have been running a lot of my training too fast, honestly. Also, let's be real I'm not getting younger, lol. My PR days may be way fewer than when I was in my 20s, but the passion for the sport is still there and even if I just get slower and slower I will always enjoy being part of the running community. So with all that in mind, I've been able to let the preoccupation with pace go...at least for the most part :)
The other thing is that I've made a definite decision on is one my my 2017 goals. I will be doing the Run For God devotional. I had a couple experiences that led me to this. First, I was checking Facebook and found the story of why Run For God was founded. The story hit home with me. The founder was approached by a friend who was concerned that running had become an idol rather than just something done for health and recreation. That got me thinking about my own relationship with the sport. Then just yesterday there was a local race I chose not to enter, when the results were posted on line I saw I would have placed in my age group. I was so upset! Why didn't I enter that race? Why did I let an award slip through my fingers? Why would I not sign up for a race even if money is tight or I have other obligations, or.... I stopped myself right there. That type of thinking is NOT the direction I want my running to take. I realized right then that I need to refocus myself and I think the Run For God devotional will be perfect.
With that I'm off to do the family thing, and the cleaning house thing, and the running thing. Happy running!!
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