Facing Fears

I have not followed my schedule this week.  I won't even be getting all my miles that I am supposed to in week 8 - which is 19 - gonna be about (exactly) 5 short.  I skipped my 5 mile run yesterday.  Not just to skip it like you just 'skip school' back in high school (everyone did that, right?), but I kinda rearranged my schedule and now I don't even have a chance to squeeze the 5 back in.  I'M. OK. WITH. THAT.  I have to keep telling myself this or the guilt will start to ooze.

So, last Sunday's run of 7 miles left my knees barking at me.  Monday was a rest day, and I had my echo on Tuesday - so I took another rest day for Tuesday because my knees were still bothering me.  Wednesday, I did Tuesday's run of 3 miles and 4 strides, and Thursday I did the elliptical (still trying to go easy on the knees) and an awesome strength training session with my trainer Wayne.  Dude made me do 45 dead lifts and 100 squats!  I'm sore this morning.  And on that note, today I will either 1) go to the gym and do the bike, or 2) stay at home and do yoga - to get some of this soreness out.  Why am I not running today (besides the knees) when I could do my 5 miles today, rest tomorrow (or cross train) and do my normal long run on Sunday?  I thought you'd never ask.

Because, I am going to face some of my running fears tomorrow.  A Saturday.  THE one day a week that I don't do any exercise.  Ever.  This was another subconscious reason that I rearranged my schedule.  But I had to let the week go by and see if I'd actually go through with it. <----------- I'm good about not following through with things.  Sometimes.  ;)

So, here we go - I am going to do a group run (a first!) tomorrow (Saturday - another first but not very earth-shattering) with the Nashville Striders (Nashville's most popular running group - a major first!) that is at Shelby Bottoms (another first - never been there!) that starts promptly at 7:00 a.m. (definitely a first!).  


I have never ran with anyone.  ANY.ONE.  I've stared at these training runs on Nashville Striders website for weeks and weeks now.  They do a half marathon and a full marathon training run of about what you should be at in your training.  (I happen to fall right on target with the half marathon training run of 8 miles tomorrow - yay me!)  I talked to my trainer and my hairdresser (both are like talking to bartenders - spilling all your guts of what's goin on or what's goin wrong in your life) yesterday about the possibility.  They both thought 'do it!'.  But I have been so nervous because of the above paragraph!  Just show up and say 'hey I'm here - don't know any of you, oh, and I'll probably slow most of you down.  oh, what?  you'll just go on ahead and leave me back here.  Oh hey - no problem."

So, last night I copy and pasted the 2 people's names on the website who were contacts for the training runs.  I was very pleased to get a reply within a couple hours!  (I hate when I send a question in an email and don't get a reply!!  Bugs the piss out of me.)  Peter is the man!  Like I told him, he already made me feel very welcomed and I told him because of that, "I'll be there!".

This is going to be so good for me!  So eye-opening.  So liberating.  So 'I can do anything I want'.  I am going to learn so much from this run.  I can watch other people run, watch their stride, how they land, etc.  I can TALK to someone - never done that before.  Well, once, to my friend Michalyn on the treadmill.  She said 'see!  you can run and talk.'  But what I'm most excited about is running 8 miles and not counting every freakin' 10th of a mile!  I don't really do that - but as Peter (my new BFF) said, "You don't have to experience the loneliness of the long distance runner while you train."  BINGO!  No, no I don't.  Oh, and did I mention that Pete is the PRESIDENT of Nashville Striders??  I have to show up.

During strength training yesterday, Wayne said 'you do need to learn to run with other people.'  Ya think?  It's only gonna be me and 31,500 of my closest friends with me on April 28th.  No sweat.  (running pun!)  I guess I do need to learn how to share my toys.

So tomorrow when you guys are all snug in your beds, I will be rolling out of mine around 5:00 a.m. so I can have a lot of coffee and a little food, leave by 6:00 a.m. so I can find this place that is basically downtown - remember that whole 'I live in the sticks' post - park, warm-up, get instructions (??? don't I just run?) and start at 7:00 a.m.  God I hope there is at least 1 person that is as slow as me.