Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Am I ready for a 50K in 2012?

I had a running funk Saturday. I went out in an attempt to get ready for my upcoming 50K. It had just snowed a few inches, many sidewalks, etc. were not plowed, and the mercury was sitting just above 0 F. The wind was blasting - perfect to condition me to run in whatever the JD 50K can throw at me.

The plan: go out, take it really easy, and be out for two to three hours. Simulate the unpredictable conditions of the race, learn to deal with snow in your shoes and on the path.

I made it 70 minutes, and it threw my worldview into doubt.

It was rough and it made me question what I had planned to do in two weeks. Questions floated in my blood-sugar depleted mind. Am I really ready to run, let alone race, a 50K in two weeks? Will I make it through the inevitable post-holing? I hate running on sand, what if the race is like that? I'll get no traction and want to quit.

Those questions lingered until I got home and replenished. A cup of hot chocolate, a banana and an apple later, I felt better. Tomorrow will be another, better day, I thought. And that was all it took. I will have good workouts and bad ones. The goal is to make it through the bad ones to train another day and not get down on oneself because of a failed training run.

So the answer is yes - even if I'm really not - I just need to adjust my expectations. I'm not sure what to expect, other than to run five 10K loops in the snow as fast as possible. And try to not freeze my toes doing it.

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