Milo and the Calf

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back at blogging

It has been a while since I posted on here.  Life got seriously in the way of training and of updating this blog over the last two months. First there was studying for the Bar, then the Bar itself, then catching up at work, and then vacation. My running log shows that my weekly mileage took a real nose dive from 3o+ miles a week to a two week stretch in there where I did not run at all.

As that chart shows, I seriously feel off the training wagon. I’ve had to reassess where I am and my ability to successfully run a fall marathon. When I decided to get serious about running again, one of the things I promised myself was that I would respect the races I ran. I have half assed my way through marathon training once, and I do not want to do that again. By attempting to train for a marathon at the same time as studying for the Bar Exam, I bit off more than I could chew, and my training suffered. I am therefore really in no shape to be running a marathon in a month. It sucks, but the best thing to do I think is to dial down the marathon to a half marathon and try and run that race as well as I can. Five weeks from now, I am sure I could drag myself through 26.2 miles, but I wouldn’t be running it, I’d be struggling to survive. Instead I think it is better to really run the half and put a full marathon off until spring, 2010.

I have high hopes for my running in the rest of 2009 and into 2010 and I have high hopes that now that my life has settled down some I will be able to more often update this blog. I know almost no one reads this thing, but I enjoy doing it, so I’ll expect the return of mileage totals, musing on the physical,  Friday Inspiration posts and some other new features in the future.

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Comments (

9

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  1. smt

    As I was doing like, seven miles the other day and thinking about how glad I was that it was seven and not twenty-seven, I was thinking about you/wondering what you were going to do about your marathon plans. And then lo and behold: an entry from your on google reader!

    Anyway, this sounds like a smart plan! Half marathons are a fun distance and don’t kill your life — maybe just your Saturday evening, but I bet you can spare one. Looking forward to more updates — after years of this, I need inspiration some times to get out there and run.

    Reply
  2. seanv2

    I am more than a little disappointed that I won’t be doing the full marathon, but I have to be reasonable. Better to run a half and not die than run a full and suck.

    How much are you running these days, SMT?

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  3. smt

    You can push yourself close enough to death with a half marathon — it will feel plenty satisfying! (or whatever, I’ve pushed myself to involuntarily peeing, which is on the way to death I think.)

    My running varies so much week to week…I try for 30-35 mi/wk but some weeks it’s more like 25. not really keeping track or thinking about it toooooo much, though i did put in 4.5 last night at 1 am. Some days I’m more gung ho than others.

    Reply
    1. seanv2

      I’ve pushed myself to involuntarily peeing,

      Seriously? Wow, you are an inspiration!

      Are you racing at all?

      Reply
      1. smt

        I’ve wet my pants twice! Once in my first half marathon ever, during which it was like 94 degrees (Central Park in August, fun), another time in a 5k around Mets Stadium (also hot, in July), when I had this brilliant idea that three margaritas the night before + PR attempt was a possibility. I think I missed a PR by just a few seconds.

        Anyway, I don’t even remember the last time I ran a race. Races in Beantown are expensive ($25 for 20 minutes of running?) and usually take a car to get to and I’m not ALL that interested in running things 30 seconds/mile slower than I used to! Oh well…maybe if I get a job in Kansas or something and am really bored, I’ll take it up again.

  4. lindsay

    i’ve thought about you at times recently too and wondered where you had disappeared to! glad all is well but sorry to hear running has suffered a little with your busy life. always a bummer :-/

    it’s definitely wise to respect the distance. i’m sure it sucks to switch over to the half, but you’ll feel much better after running a half than if you tried to run a full. better to keep it reasonable and not potentially injure yourself, although as runners we are often too stubborn to acknowledge this before it’s too late.

    there is nothing wrong with running a half vs. a full! (i personally prefer them myself i think) 🙂 you can definitely put a strong effort and performance into the half. so what are you waiting for? go get that 13.1!

    Reply
    1. seanv2

      Thanks for the kind words, Lindsay! I really hate that just as I felt I was getting into decent running shape, life got seriously in the way. Post bar exam my life is much more manageable and I hope to really make running more of a priority.

      Reply
  5. tgorourke

    I figured you had taken some time off after the bar exam. I think you deserved it.

    And yes, it might have been a lot to bite off, but now you can enjoy real life, just working and other stuff. Don’t get too down on yourself. You can only do what you can do. I’ve tried to not be so obsessive about running, myself, lately. It’s good to have balance in life.

    Reply
    1. seanv2

      Balance in life has never been something I was good at!

      Reply