So I think I figured out why I struggled so much last week. I had decided that I needed to push my pace on these short runs. So I kept getting disappointed when it really wasn't much faster than usual. Yesterday I decided to just run my natural pace on my 4 miles and it felt really good to run again (finally). And I ran 8:30 miles so it was barely slower than usual. It's like all I was doing was making my stride awkward and hating it the whole time. So no more of that. Yeah, I might include some speed work every once in a while, but for the most part, I'm just going to do what's natural.
I have a cold and my head kills, but I read in a magazine that running doesn't make colds worse and some think it might make you get better faster so I'm still going to put in my 3 miles today.
I'm always amazed at what a difference small adjustments in your pace can make. I'm glad you figured out a comfortable pace (which to me is still hecka fast!) I've read that it's good to do speed workouts like once a week but not everyday. The key is just to keep logging those base miles.
ReplyDeleteThat stinks about your cold too! I got sick a couple weeks back and didn't run for 2 days. Then I talked to Kevin (Naomi's hubby) and he said that whenever he gets sick he purposely runs to make himself feel better. Anyway, so I tried it and surprisingly it totally helped! So yeah, good for you for running through your cold, I don' think you'll regret it!