I wrote out this really emo whiny post, and then I got busy.  I feel a little less like listening to Death Cab for Cutie and putting on eyeliner, but I feel like I should chronicle where I’m at.

jan23-2

I got a promotion at work, with a nice title and salary bump.  I had been playing the “what if” game for a while, but that solidified the 2015 plan is to be Senior Producer over multiple projects.  Hence, things got busy as of Tuesday when that got made official.

We’re dealing with a lot of change, just when we got to the point where we were a comfortable, well oiled machine.  It sucks, and it took some time to get adjusted, but I think we’re moving on with life and finding the new normal.

I’m finding a weird part of this marathon training slump.  I’ve never been this consistent with mileage, and I’m not finding any issues with motivating to get a run in every day, but the idea of running for more than two hours kinda repulses me.  I was able to knock out a 15 mile run on the treadmill (I know… it wasn’t even as terrible as I thought it would be).  However, last week, I had no runs over 7 miles, but I had 33 miles total.  Starting last Friday, I felt super flat, like when I started running, I just felt… deflated.

jan23-3

I forced myself to do a longer run (7 miles) Wednesday, and the first half I felt like a half-full balloon, but the second half was awesome.  Same with yesterday’s run.  I’m hoping this is the upswing.

The fact is, I really only have 4 weeks left to long run before taper.  This means I need to hit 4/4 runs, or I really should bust down to the half.  This was an emotional touchy subject with me last weekend, but I’ve come full circle and accepting that it is what it is.  Tomorrow, I’ll set out to run and see what comes from it.  From that, I’ll decide if I continue to pursue the marathon or start playing the “get in half marathon PR shape” game.

I’m ending the running streak Jan 31st (5 weeks).  I had considered going longer, but I’m not.  I’ve learned that the world does not have to align just so for me to go for a fucking run, which I think sometimes I would wait for in the past.  Going forward, I’d like to run most days.  Getting in 5-6 miles at lunch is tops.  I think getting in random miles on the treadmill or outside when I have a few minutes around the house really adds up.  But, I also think I really need a cross training day the day before a long run (15+), though I don’t think an easy mile or 3 is a bad idea the day after.  I also think that a better goal going forward may be run, bike, swim or weights/stretch every day.  Something something.

My swim is improving like woah without even trying.  I’m rocking the sub-2:00/100m pace without even concentrating on it (get in, swim while thinking about other stuff and listening to music, steady pace).  Can I swim this marathon instead?

jan23-5

I am itching to be a triathlete again.  I want hard swim sets, biking outside, harder trainer rides, and for the lake to be warm enough already for fucks sake.  I can’t wait to really start the training to kick ass at the short stuff this spring.

No booze January was a bust.  With everything going on at work, I made it 11 days.  It’s Jan 23rd and I’ve had drinks twice and probably will on Saturday.  I’ve learned some things about myself and trying to a) not have drinks b) not eat crappy and c) not go out and spend money does not work at the same time.  I have not been quite as unhappy and bored as I remember the last two weekends at home, sober, and worrying about work/life stuff.  I had thought perhaps it would make me more productive, but it didn’t.  I had no fun and didn’t like it.

jan23-1

Less booze January did have some benefits though.  In that 11 days, my tolerance went way down, which is great.  It’s been a long time since a single beer did anything but make me burp.  Also, breaking the established habits of “I always have beer on this day” makes it to be a celebration/commiseration when it happens, not just because it’s Thursday.

The scale is all over the place (175 one day, 182 the next).  I have done a shitty job at tracking food, and honestly, I have no idea what my goal is with that because I’ve not yet found a calorie count that’s reasonable where I steadily lose weight.  I can definitely tell I feel fat lately because my instagram is all random pictures of other things, and not selfies.  Workin’ on it.

I’m about 50/50 with my goals for January.  They were probably a bit ambitious, so I’m pretty happy with that.

And, that’s that.  Heading off to run my requisite one mile, stretch and foam roll and maybe some core, and then rest up for tomorrow’s run.  Happy Friday, y’all!