Yowsa

My legs are SO SORE. I'm not really sure why, because it's not like I increased my mileage an insane amount or anything this weekend.

In fact, I only did 13(.1).

But because I did not want to run at ALL, it seemed like a lot more. It was rough, because after about 2 miles I was finished. I mean, physically it seemed fine, but mentally I was just not there this weekend. I also felt very slow. I was not looking at my watch purposefully, because I felt like I was doing a 10 minute mile, and I knew that if I was aware of that, my run would seem even longer. But in fact, I was doing a flat 9 minute mile. (I ended the 13.1 miles with a 1:57.59).

I also have been slacking off on eating properly. So the whole time I felt like I was running with lead in my belly.

I am glad that I can run a 9 minute mile and it feels "easy". This just confirms my hypothesis that I run better when I don't think.

What I mean by this is that I think that my brain and my body KNOW all the things I usually concentrate on (or freak out about) during my runs...like pacing, going out slower at first, how far I can push without injuring myself, etc. So I am working on running more zenlike...just feeling the run rather than overanalyzing it. I'm even thinking of running the marathon like this, rather than setting a time goal. That makes me nervous, but I think I would actually do better that way!