Day 14116, & hit a bump in the road...

So, literally, I hit a bump in the road. Well, no, not literally. Actually, I was hit on the road by a car when it bumped into me while I was running. True story. But I'll get to that in a minute.

Do you want to know the hardest thing about marathon training? Time management. That is pretty much the do or die skill set needed to successfully train for a marathon. Now, I am sure we can all come up with a list of people who have very poor time management skills and have successfully completed such an undertaking. Those people though? Obviously, they possess an extraordinary skill or two that allowed them to squeak by without managing their time.

Me?

Time management master. I can handle everything I take on. Why set your self up for failure, I say. If you can't be certain you will succeed, then you probably shouldn't be trying it in the first place. You'll only embarrass yourself...

And then, some dickhead comes up and throws a wrench into your carefully mapped out time management plan and fucks up your whole delicately balanced life.

Yeah, you guessed it. Someone quit their job a few weeks back. Restaurant 2 lost a line cook and now everything has been turned upside down to compensate. So, restaurant 1 sends a kitchen manager to cover the line at #2, leaving #1 weak. So, #1 reschedules Chef to be around more in the evening, leaving me to cover the morning.

Why does this matter, you ask?

We all know that I cannot run in the afternoon, post work. Too hot!

How in the world am I supposed to get up at 4:30 am, wake up my legs and brain, run, get back home, stop sweating (which can take up to 45 minutes), get ready for work, and be there by 7:30? Well, it's actually not that hard, as long as I am not trying to fit an 8-10 mile run in there.

But, now throw in the fact that I might have been at work until 9 the night before. And that I cannot just rush home, jump in bed, and immediately experience quality rem sleep.

See my problem? How in the world am I supposed to be able to drink beer and still train for a marathon if all these dumbfucks keep screwing up my plans???

And remember- this is important- I started running so that I didn't have to cut back on the beer drinking. Voila! Full circle...

I am such the master storyteller...

Anyhoo, last week was ok. I made it work. And, then there was the "cold" front that came through. That always helps.

Sunday was a nice 4.ish something (I forgot to write it down)
Monday was the off day, as I had seen the forecast for the rest of the week
Tuesday, 6.25 miles
Wednesday, 1.7 miles of early morning garbage. My legs felt like overcooked pasta
Thursday, as if it was sent from heaven, was a perfect 10.4 miles, at 9 am, in the 70s, low humidity, with an average pace of 9:21, and a negative split.

And that is when I got hit by the car. Running by Vanderbilt, with the walk signal, I was reminded of how few people look to their right when turning right on red. Instinct took over fast and I jumped, thereby preventing the car from actually hitting me. Basically, I jumped onto the hood. Damn, those people looked scared as I ran off. It really was a hit n run...

Friday, I ran a quick 5.0 and it felt good after the long run that preceded it.

Friday night I decided to run the 4th of July 10K, my first race in two years. Note to self: DO NOT COMMIT TO RUNNING RACES WHILE DRINKING!

Saturday, knowing I had the race that I was completely unprepared and unrested for, still wanting my goal mileage for the week (which ends on Saturdays,) I ran a slow 3.75.

So, the weekly total was a little light at 31.5-ish but not bad.

And then the race...

I had to close the restaurant Saturday night so I didn't get out until 10. Got home, ate brown rice for dinner, and made it to bed by 11. Up at 4:30 for the 7:00 start.

I still wasn't overly concerned. 6.2 miles? Easy. Especially with my plan to run the first half comfortably and then barrel through round 2 (double loop.)

I won't go into the specifics of the poorly organized race. I had run this series before and it was far better then. I'll just say that I picked up my packet (which took almost 30 minutes,) rushed to stretch and warm up (which I hate doing that way,) and then waited for the race to start for way too long (7:20!)

Mile 1, 7:44
Mile 2, 8:08
Mile 3, 8:04
Mile 4, 8:56
Mile 5, 9:05
Mile 6, 8:55

See? I ran it just as I had planned! Only backwards...

I have never run a 5K, so at least I PR'd that one. According to Garmin, I was 24 and change for the 5K half, which put me 30 something-th. And, I did consider quitting then, but I barreled forward. I was glad to have finished, but it was miserable. I was not ready. I had overdone the mileage for a race week. Blah blah blah.

But, on the other hand, I PR'd it, however slightly.

Age: 12/23
Sex: 74/171
OA: 115/344

128 days to marathon. Have I mentioned, I have lost 15 pounds in the last 2 months? And that I need to go purchase some 31s...