You know how some times, you can see something ahead of you…a decision or a move that could be a really good decision or that could be a really not so good decision. You are able to see it looking at you and you have that moment or two to change the course of things and go for the better decision. Then there are times when you don’t have that….I wouldn’t call it an opportunity but rather, that moment to think ahead and consider your options and the consequences of your actions. And it is when you have taken the wrong turn and look back in hindsight, you want to smack your forehead and call yourself all kinds of names for mistakes that could have been so easily avoided.
Mistake #1 for me was that I went to the gym at 6 this morning. I was up far earlier than 6 and my thought out plan (mistake #2) was to get my mile repeat run in at the gym and get back in time to shower and be ready to greet my twin grandchildren at 8:30. My husband and I would be watching them for a good part of the day since they had off from preschool and their mommy had an in-service day and no doubt, I was going to be too tired to do my run once they were picked up. Makes sense, right?! Get my run in before my busy day (mistake #3). Sure it makes sense on paper but I didn’t take into account what I would feel like after running a four mile race in extreme cold, never having actually ran or raced in such extreme cold and wind (mistake #4). Jeff told me today that I should have most definitely taken today off from running but he didn’t argue with me when I texted yesterday about going to the gym and being aware of how my foot felt and not pushing beyond any pain. Okay…
I stretched before I got on the treadmill and I entered the warmup pace at 5.5 rather than a 6, figuring my foot hadn’t felt great as I walked through the parking lot and through the community center. I was feeling it more and more as I did the first minute and into the second and so I pressed stop at 1:45. I just knew that a mile repeat run where I run any pace beyond what I was doing at that moment was going to be a bad move and really any run or jog was out of the question. Off I went to the elliptical and did a pretty easy going pace for about 12 minutes but then I started to feel the niggling in my foot and so I went for another two minutes at a slower pace before saying enough was enough. Off I went to the recumbent bike and since there was really no weight bearing movement involved, I got 30 minutes in and felt it was a good workout, considering.
I texted Jeff later in the day to let him know about my attempt at running and we exchanged a few texts and then spoke at length on the phone about how I should have taken today off AND I shouldn’t have expected to do any kind of speedwork (or any running at all) back to back with a race in extreme cold AND I did today’s workout first thing in the morning which didn’t allow me to recover from getting up and moving around and allowing my foot (which is at this point, not an overuse injury since I’ve allowed myself to take days off to heal) to breathe and explore some movement. Ever since I’ve taken up running, I have considered myself a morning runner. I prefer to get up and get my run in as a way to start my day but I realize that getting out of bed and basically putting my sneakers on with very little time in between can do more harm than good. I don’t always take into consideration how I slept the previous night or how much I moved around the previous day so to get out of bed, get washed up and dressed and go off to the treadmill or head outside can be detrimental to how my run goes. I don’t take into consideration that after a run…let’s say an intense speed interval run…I go on my merry way with my day and I am in and out of the car on errands or I’m in Israel, where I do a lot of walking here and there to lunch and to dinner. My feet (my right foot, especially) get a bit achy and I assume it’s from the three or four mile run I did on the sidewalks and stony ground but is it really that or is it a little too much?!
I wish I could go back in time and had the wisdom and proper decision making to stay in bed and skip the trip to the gym. I wish I would have thought that I should have taken today off but it honestly hadn’t crossed my mind. Now I know. I will take a full day off the day after a race, no matter how long or short the distance or however easy I think it went. I am also going to plan a little differently in my scheduling for my run and workout times. As much as I prefer to get my run over and done with , I do have flexibility most days with my schedule and I need to give myself some time to get up and ease into things on those more flexible days. I can just as easily run on the treadmill at 2 or 4 in the afternoon as I can at 7:30 or 8 and perhaps if I have managed to relax in the morning or even do some things I need to check off my to-do list, I will have a better run and most likely, a clear head.
Could have, should have, would have. I can use my hindsight to see where I went wrong and make better decisions in the future. Lesson learned.
From 'Not Me' To 'Why Not?!' 