The third week of November, I had a, what I later termed cut back week, thanks to the Youth in Government conference and what now seems an annual November cold, which began on the last day of that conference.

I, going into the conference, had told myself that I would this year actually run both days on the treadmill at the gym. Well, I did not feel like it on the first day. We got in late. Then I told myself that I would run on Tuesday but Monday night saw that the gym does not open until six which did not leave me with enough time to run prior to making sure that all the students had gotten up for the day. I did, however, plan and follow through on the plan, to run that afternoon once we returned.

The cold started in full force on Wednesday. I still have the lingering cough and post-nasal drip which makes getting going in the morning a tricky challenge. That week, it felt almost impossible. Most mornings I did not want to run. I did not strength train but I did get in both my Thursday and Friday runs. Saturday morning Mom and I both hoped to get in our weekly long run but the all day downpour foiled that attempt. Since the next day, our church’s anniversary, meant that I did not have Treehouse and neither of us were involved with worship in any of the services, we decided to run Sunday morning. Sunday morning came and I still felt tired but probably could have slogged through the run if I had forced myself to. In hindsight, I do not think that would have been a wise decision. Mom, on the other hand, had a long week preparing for an event that previous Friday. She also did not end up running with me early on in the week because, obviously, she did not go to the conference with me. So, it had been a low mileage week for her. She felt really tired and the more I thought about it, the more I realized that a cut back week would do us both some good.

I also had lingering thoughts, doubts really, from my speedwork attempt the previous Friday. When making my training plan for the 5k, I went with paces that would perhaps get me to the desired time but did not factor in the fact that I had not committed to any sort of speedwork for over a year so I had a new starting spot. At that point, I will admit that I felt rather frustrated and wondered at my ability to train seriously for anything.

I decided to not let these negative thoughts get to me and after making that third week of November a cut back week, committed myself to this week of training and the Turkey Day 8k which, as I recounted on Saturday, exceeded my expectations.

I mentioned in a few sentences in that post that I had taken the time to put some work into creating my marathon training plan. I will admit that getting over the hump of training for the marathon, sustaining the long distances, has proven to be a bit of mental block lately. I think the lack of mental stamina has been my downfall in my last few marathon attempts.

The more I think about it, actually, I realize that when I returned to teaching, that line of work requires a level of mental effort I did not need to put into my other jobs. Thus, to train on top of that meant trying to execute the same training with less mental strength on which to draw. Now that I have attempted various training plans and distances in the three and a half years since I returned to teaching , I have learned what works and what doesn’t work. Mostly, I have learned what does not work. Thankfully, lately, I have learned what does work.

When I, last Wednesday, sat down and worked through my marathon training plan, I came to the realization that the goal I want most is not the 5k but the marathon. I decided to make that the focus of my training. I went back through and rewrote my training plan for the month of December, shifted the focus to the marathon. That, combined with the 8k, has renewed my commitment to the marathon distance.

The third week of November could have ended up a real bummer and helped me settle back into the malaise of the past year or so of running but it did not. I have God to thank for that and the circumstances He has placed in my life.

Instead, I now use that cut back week as a launching point for what’s to come, the marathon and potentially so much more.