The needed boost!

The last couple of weeks I have been going with the flow. Getting in runs when I *can* (when I feel like it). I struggled on this weekends long run, and realized that I really need to focus the next couple weeks. Its crunch time.

My schedule got a bit messed up as I ended up cross-training on my rest day, so I changed my rest day to Monday. That meant running on Tuesday and Wednesday. Since I didn't want to do to medium runs in a row I made Tuesday a shorter run and Wed medium. Lets just say Tuesday was tough. It was HOT outside, it was after work, and I didn't warm up or stretch because I just wanted to get it done. Bad idea. The whole run was a struggle. I got through, with a decent pace, but man was it a pain. My legs hurt, it just wasn't pretty.

I was bound to make Wednesday better, and fortunately it was the best run I have had in weeks! I did a nice 10 minute warm up (walk, jog, stretch). I went in the morning when it was cooler, properly hydrated. Of course GOOD doesn't always mean easy. The run started out okay. I wanted to walk, I mentally *needed* to walk. That dreaded mental block I have been fighting since day one.

On the boards I have shared a tip several times. Recently I have been quoted for this multiple times, so I thought I would share it here. I haven't used AS MUCH since I started running further, but today it's what got me through my run.

When I feel the desire to walk, I ask myself 3 questions.
1. Is your breathing in check?
2. Are your legs feeling okay?
3. Is your heart rate in an acceptable range?

If yes to all 3, I keep running. At that point the question becomes "Why do you think you NEED to walk when you don't?" It's often boredom, or even more it's that I don't believe I can do it. But I can. And I DO.

I thought I would share this. If you end up trying this out, let me know how it goes! It most definitely got me through today's run, and many in the past!

Looking forward to my 8 miler this weekend, and hoping to bring a camera because this was the lovely run from 2 weeks ago I wished I could have captured for you! Now's my chance!