R.I.P.P.

I am mourning my speed and my mileage. When I was marathon training, I could head out for miles on end, and what I found discouraging was that it took me forever to warm up, and my 5k-10k speed was long gone. I could no longer run a sub-7 5k, yet running a 10 miler felt awful. Where's the happy medium?

 I had heard this from my Ultra-friends before....I chalked it up to one too many ultras...they're just so use to running 5-6 hours on a mountainside trail that they probably just have no desire to go short & fast...it just doesn't give them that runner's high. I was wrong.

Fast forward to 5 weeks post marathon, I am still struggling to find my speed, but now I am not out running 20 milers either. And my casual runs are pathetic. My warm up mile is practically a crawl...my peak mile is slower than what my marathon race pace was...and when, I think I am picking it up, I'm not...just trotting along at a pace I would have warmed up at prior.

In desperation the other day, I hit the treadmill because I couldn't get out before my family's alarm clocks went off...so I decided to play...an old workout I use to do on a whim when I could run the a 6:30 pace 5k...some intervals mixed in with some kettlebell burpees, swings, & box jumps. It felt good to get my heart rate up...but this time, I could only hold a 6:50 pace for 3 minutes without feeling like I might fly off it.

So for now, I am kind of lost...I'm not running the mileage I was while marathon training, and I'm clearly not ready to run a 5k at a pace I'd like to. It's a double funeral for my mileage & my speed...and it's back to the drawing board for me. I'm not sure what I'm up for next...my Achilles injury has me somewhat limited and perhaps heading to PT.

For now, I will work on my strength, my flexibility, and hopefully, I will be back more resilient than ever. ...and the sun will shine once again...whether it's a 3 mile post-injury build up or a 30 miler ultra challenge...I will be back.