A Marathoner

Pre-dawn. 27 degrees. 18 mph winds. 16 degrees with wind chill. Running in those conditions can be characterized as character building, insane, hardcore, etc. I viewed it as Manning Up or Womaning Up. Only the truly hardcore attempt to get it done in darkness until those conditions. Anyone out there gets my utmost respect. And I was certainly not alone this morning.

For once, I actually slept through the night. I woke up at 5am and just laid there for an hour. My day trip yesterday was only to Chicago, I was still a bit worn down. Nonetheless, I needed to get some decent mileage in this morning. Gotta hit the streets.

Warm up was uneventful. Not too fast, not too slow. I must have done something right as I felt stronger at the end. Since I hit the streets late at 6:22, I did spend a decent portion of the run under sunny skies. Again the sunrise was spectacular. Even the crazy weather did not negate the stunning daybreak.

Only my face was cold or wind burned during the run. By mile 4 I loosened up and was feeling good. I saw the same pack of elite runners who always provide added incentive. I decided to add a couple of loops to stretch it out a bit, eventhough my face was angry and frozen. Nonetheless, my spirits were good as knew I was putting in a solid effort. Focusing on my form is paying dividends. My cranky quad/groin no longer hurts. I also discovered the source of the pain – my lower abs. Between all the plank exercises and other core work, I pulled something. Poor form contributed to and reinforced the pain further down. Now that I’ve figured it out, I’m feeling better about the solution.

Totals for the morning – 8.8 miles at 8:41 pace. I’m pleased with the results given how I was feeling at the start. At the very end the tips of my fingers felt frozen (despite double gloves). May need to look into replacements.