Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Day 31 (9/13): 4 miles / 48:25

This day may go down in history as being my worst run ever.  I'm not sure if I can even put my disdain into words...

I must begin by explaining that this is my first training run on a treadmill.  I've had the luxury thus far of doing all of my training outdoors in some pretty great running weather, so there's no question I'm a bit spoiled.  Still, one wouldn't think that the ever-so-slight incline automatically built in to a treadmill would be that big of a deal.  If you'd seen me struggle through every inch of that 4 miles, you might have thought I'd had the incline jacked up at some 80 degree angle.  Let me tell you, it sure felt that way.

And struggle I did.  I kid you not when I tell you that I seriously considered quitting more than a dozen times during that run.  Even after reducing the speed to a more manageable pace, I told myself with each step that I was only going to run until the next even number (in tenths of a mile, of course), the next half-mile mark (even as early on as the .50 mile mark), the next mile (only when I was near the end of that mile - I never considered that I'd make it to 2 miles after finishing 1).  After 2.5 I told myself I was more than half way there and that I could certainly reach the end.  But, by 2.6, I was cursing myself for being such a fool as to believe I might actually be able to complete 4 miles on this damn thing.

The most interesting part of this whole crazy scenario is that I used to run on this treadmill years ago.  Not one like it or a similar model... this exact treadmill.  It used to belong to my mother who sold it years ago to an extended family member.  I got in touch with them recently because I was realizing that, with my husband's travel schedule, running outdoors would get increasingly more difficult and I would eventually need some way to put in my miles when I didn't have a babysitter.  Lucky me, they were no longer using it and were more than happy to sell it back to me.  Yeah... lucky me...

I tried the entire time to focus on my audio book.  This book is one of the worst I've ever read (well, not exactly read, but you know what I mean) and it only made my run more excruciating.  The incline setting buttons laughed at me as I struggled with the "zero incline" and I cursed them several times before my run was completed.

I can honestly say that I have no idea how I managed to get through all 4 miles.  But, I can tell you one thing for certain... that damn treadmill will be my last possible resort when it comes to training.  I plan to battle the cold, the rain, the heat and the snow long before I concede that the treadmill is my best option.  My husband's travel is going to be far more frustrating now than it's ever been in the past if it means I have to forfeit my outdoor runs.

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