Winter started off very....well wintery...this year. I got home from work yesterday afternoon with temps still in the upper 40's. But the forecast was for the temp. to drop and some very heavy winds to be moving in. I knew I had to try and get a 45 minute run in, so I immediately put on the running clothes and headed out. It was a little rainy, but temps in the upper 40's are really not bad for running. Once I get going I warm up pretty quick. But, the winds were starting. Not as heavy as they would get later in the evening, but heavy enough to make running a little difficult. Also, when I don't eat the healthiest throughout the day, it tends to create issues when I run, and working with a bunch of bakers during the Christmas season doesn't tend to lend itself to healthy eating. However, I did make it through the 45 minutes of running and got almost 4 1/2 miles in. Not my greatest run at this point, but I've learned to embrace the bad runs. If I can make it through a bad run then the good runs are cake. Making it through a bad run makes it easier to push through those rough times in races.
This weekend I'm considering adding my 10th state to the states in which I've run a race. St. Marys, WV is hosting a 5K run. While it is expected to be cold, the winds should have died down and it is supposed to be sunny. Better yet, this run is scheduled for 2:30pm, so instead of driving down the night before and staying in a hotel, I can take a little road trip on Sunday and come back without the added expense of a hotel.
Running is supposed to be one of the most affordable sports to participate in. I'm not sure I agree with that assessment. I have yet to find running clothes that are "cheap" and the registration cost for races continues to go up every year. For those of us that participate in "destination races", the cost of travel of hotels adds even more to the cost. It has become somewhat of a circle for me. Running helps me to reduce stress in my life. It's something I enjoy that I can pretty much do anywhere I go. But in order to be able to afford to run, I have to work a lot of overtime at work. Working a lot of hours increases stress, which I work off by running, which means I work more to pay for the running, which causes stress, which I work off by running...well, I think you get the picture. I don't have deep pockets by any stretch of the imagination, but I do work hard to make sure I have something in my pockets and still be able to do what I love doing.
I made the mistake of canceling my vacation day on New Years Day. My thought at the time was that I didn't want to use a vacation day when I can save the day for another time and get holiday pay for working. However, what I forgot, was that New Years Day hosts one of the few races being held during this time of the year. Having run the "First on the First 5K" last year, at a point when I was just getting back in to running, I would have liked to have gotten a chance to run this race again and see how much my time would have improved running along the same course a year later.
Next stop is Myrtle Beach for the Myrtle Beach Half Marathon. That's not until February, so I've got a little extra time to prepare for this one. I'm hoping for some jumps over my last half marathon, and also hoping to be down to, or lower than, my goal weight by then. We'll see what happens.
This weekend I'm considering adding my 10th state to the states in which I've run a race. St. Marys, WV is hosting a 5K run. While it is expected to be cold, the winds should have died down and it is supposed to be sunny. Better yet, this run is scheduled for 2:30pm, so instead of driving down the night before and staying in a hotel, I can take a little road trip on Sunday and come back without the added expense of a hotel.
Running is supposed to be one of the most affordable sports to participate in. I'm not sure I agree with that assessment. I have yet to find running clothes that are "cheap" and the registration cost for races continues to go up every year. For those of us that participate in "destination races", the cost of travel of hotels adds even more to the cost. It has become somewhat of a circle for me. Running helps me to reduce stress in my life. It's something I enjoy that I can pretty much do anywhere I go. But in order to be able to afford to run, I have to work a lot of overtime at work. Working a lot of hours increases stress, which I work off by running, which means I work more to pay for the running, which causes stress, which I work off by running...well, I think you get the picture. I don't have deep pockets by any stretch of the imagination, but I do work hard to make sure I have something in my pockets and still be able to do what I love doing.
I made the mistake of canceling my vacation day on New Years Day. My thought at the time was that I didn't want to use a vacation day when I can save the day for another time and get holiday pay for working. However, what I forgot, was that New Years Day hosts one of the few races being held during this time of the year. Having run the "First on the First 5K" last year, at a point when I was just getting back in to running, I would have liked to have gotten a chance to run this race again and see how much my time would have improved running along the same course a year later.
Next stop is Myrtle Beach for the Myrtle Beach Half Marathon. That's not until February, so I've got a little extra time to prepare for this one. I'm hoping for some jumps over my last half marathon, and also hoping to be down to, or lower than, my goal weight by then. We'll see what happens.
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