Saturday, December 14, 2013

Walkin' (should be runnin') in a Winter Wonderland...

My week is pretty much wrapped up, and that would be with a snow-covered holiday bow.  I usually love snow, but it's totally stressing me out this year.  Training for a half marathon in the snow wasn't really my plan, but probably something I could handle, but with the cold temps, the snow just melts during the day into ICE and the streets/sidewalks are covered.  I know, I know, my last post I was lamenting over the icy conditions as well.  I'm a broken record.  

(I seriously keep coming back to watch this and laugh...this is exactly how I feel today! LOL)

This week I was scheduled for my long run of 8 miles on Friday.  We had freezing rain and ice so I opted to push it off to Monday.  I can easily do this since my long runs are every other week.  The forecast is calling for 44 degrees on Monday, but this morning I woke up to THIS: 



*sigh* 

We never have this much snow/ice on the ground in December!  I figured if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!  I went out and took some snowy shots since it is really beautiful.  At least my house looks like it has Christmas spirit.  I planned that when I picked the siding and painted the door, btw. 






 The snow is sticking so well to the trees like that b/c we had freezing rain first and then wet snow.  Should make for nice running conditions. not.

I nearly decided to just throw caution to the wind and run this morning to get it done.  The snow is covering the ice and really crunchy/not slippery. I know once it starts to melt and refreeze it will get worse.  I ran 4 miles yesterday though and I know it's not the smart thing to do, so I'm going to hold out until Monday.  I WILL get that 8 miles done on Monday though, I don't care what I have to do!  The ice and snow has me feeling a bit droopy and weighed down, like this:



It's funny that this all seems to be intertwined with my mental block for 8 miles.  It's not that I don't think I can do it.  I've done it before.  I know where I want to run it, I have a 4 mile loop I do, so doing it twice is perfect...BUT... I also know I'm stressing b/c this is the mileage that injured me this past summer and I think deep down I'm scared.  I just want to GET IT DONE but I feel like the weather is playing with my mind and making something I already fear even worse. I know I'll feel much better after I get it done.

Today is also 69 days until we leave for Florida!  I'm ready to have this view:

but for now I'll have to muddle through this first:



Oh and since this is supposed to be my weekly wrap-up (I should just call it the weekly whine-up. LOL) I did all three runs on my training schedule this week on the TM but did 4 instead of 8 on Friday since I am doing that Monday.  

EDITED TO ADD:  Ok folks.  I just HAD to prove to myself that I could run in snow, so I went out for a short run.  I can safely say that I will not be running in the snow again and certainly not 8 miles.  I ran 2.69 miles, VERY slowly.  It was beautiful and I can see how someone would like it for a "fun run" but I nearly broke my ankle and fell on my face.  I had to run in uncleared snow because anywhere that was cleared was very slippery.  It wasn't slippery in the uncleared areas, but I also could not see what was under the snow (i.e. potholes, etc).  So...I'm no less grumpy about the weather but I am at least a little less stressed about my long run Monday.  It will get done, but on the treadmill.  I'm sure I will find time in the next 10 weeks to do some runs outside on days when it has melted. Right?!?!?!  Just for fun, a couple shots from my snowy run:




  Shew!  That made my post superlong!  Thanks for reading if you got through the whole thing!

Tell me about your mental blocks.  How do you deal with them?  I normally just push through, I'm stubborn that way, but get really crabby when I can't push through it right away!

18 comments:

  1. I'm going to have to run in the snow when I visit family in Chicago…. not looking forward to it! My blood has thinned so much since I moved to Florida and I have no tolerance for the cold! AND I HATE SNOW!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rachel, I warmed up pretty fast and wasn't cold really at all...but hated running in the snow. It was slippery and made it harder. Glad I did it just to say I have, but I won't be doing it again unless just for a short fun run.

      Delete
  2. Your pictures are GORGEOUS! I love the front of your house, it does look so Christmasy. :)

    I hear ya on the running in the snow too. I spent the day yesterday with Ace at my parents house and they have a next door neighbor who has 3 dogs, a yippie one, a BEAUTIFUL Black 8 month old Great Dane named Stella and a Mixed hound/shepherd named Griffin. Well I let Ace and Kemba out into the backyard.... Ace and Griffin went NUTS through the fence at each other. I tried to get to Ace to pull him back and fell straight on my ass. As I tried to get up to get to Ace again I fell on my knees and ended up pulling his collar off. That was all it took for me to realize running or well walking in the snow is out for me.

    On the bright side, last year when I was training for the princess Half we had a HORRIBLE snow storm here to the point that entire towns were snowed in with no plows, That was end of January-when I left for WDW, I didn't run for 3 weeks and had only done 9 miles before then...I had a blast at Princess and had no issues during the run :)

    You'll do fantastic, I just know it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Meg! Yep, I'm just not very good at balancing on anything slippery. Makes me feel better you only did 9. I'm so concerned that I will have to train nearly all my long runs on the TM and then when I go to do the "real" mileage on pavement, I won't be able to do it!

      Delete
  3. Well it may be a pain to run it, but your photos are bee-you-tee-ful!! Love them!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Gorgeous photos! I'm with you - I just don't want to risk slipping and hurting myself. I can get used to the cold, but I've got too much invested in this race (emotionally & monetarily) to hurt myself and miss out! I'll make do with the treadmill too for things like this. - Jess

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yep, that's how I feel Jess! I have so much invested, I feel like I need to be really careful and made sure I'm not risking my body in any way before this race!

      Delete
  5. Dang, I'd be lying if I said I have ever had a mental block of snow in front of me. I literally would have no idea what I would do! You are awesome for trying to run it it, but that couldn't have been easy! Also frustrating that something that looks gorgeous is just inconvenient to the max for long runs. Good luck getting those miles done, even if it needs to be on the treadmill! You got this :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Lauren! It finally melted and we got a bit of warm weather, so luckily I was able to get some runs outside. I'll just have to play it by ear the next 2 months!

      Delete
  6. We're having a super snowy winter up here in MN too! I haven't ran outside in it yet since I'm so nervous about my knee. I feel your frustration!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was not just hard b/c I was worried about slipping, it was hard b/c it felt like I was trudging (is that a word?) through the snow, so everything felt heavier and harder too. I'm glad it melted!

      Delete
  7. Girl, don't hurt yourself! I agree, it definitely is beautiful! I'm surprised at how cold it's been here, too. We usually don't have these kind of temps until February. 69 days...can't wait!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm hoping this isn't a sign of what's to come the next couple months! It was so beautiful, but I think I'll admire from afar next time! LOL. So glad it melted finally!

      Delete
  8. So pretty! The snow may be annoying, but at least it's nice to look at! Be careful, though! It's not worth any injury! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agreed! It was really pretty and I'm glad I got some photos b/c it's all gone now! Yay!

      Delete
  9. Those pictures are beautiful!!! Running on ice is scary, I've always avoided it when at all possible. We've had a lot of snow here too, but we have this thing called an inversion. It makes the air quality so bad that you walk outside and breath it and you might as well smoke a cigarette, because it's just as bad for you (You can't run in it). Luckily this morning I woke up to beautiful new snowfall, 6 inches and still coming:) Inversion gone, yay!!! This years weather is snowy everywhere this year it seems, but hopefully you'll be able to get all your runs in:) There is always the dreadmill:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Kristy! I've never heard of an inversion? That sucks! I think I'll have quite a few dates with the dreadmill if this weather continues! Luckily this round melted and I got a couple runs outside!

      Delete