Some training runs are simply dreadful

Running can be a wonderful thing, but occasionally it’s barely bearable. It’s true. And I’m not whining or complaining.  It’s just a simple fact of marathon training that some training runs turn somewhat randomly into nightmares.

Take yesterday, for example.

My marathon training schedule demanded I pound out 12 miles. (I've run farther than that in training, in plenty of half marathons, and in a full marathon. So I didn't expect this to be a momentous event.) I planned my route and stepped out to start.

That’s where things began to go wrong. It was a terrible, no-good, dreadful, pitiful, painful, atrocious, abominable, very bad, lousy, beastly, hideous run.

Some training runs are simply dreadful.

 There could be all sorts of reasons why this particular run was especially awful.

• I’ve pushed my own limits more than usual lately.  (Rest days? What rest days?)
• Certain stresses are adding extra rocks to my emotional backpack. (Don’t get me started on that.)
• A full night’s sleep has become a rarity.
• I’m coming back from a knee injury that still nags me on longer runs.
• Multiple sclerosis tends to mount its ongoing attacks with extra oomph in the warmer months, chipping away at my balance, energy, and wherewithal.
• I ate dinner way too late the night before. That probably explains why my digestive system went into overdrive around mile four, threatening to sideline me. (But it didn’t.)
• Something bit me (or stung me) on one bicep, as I plodded along mile six.
• My Garmin began displaying its “low battery” message halfway through mile eight. It still measured the distance, but I couldn’t monitor myself till I completed the trip.
• A souped-up diesel truck revved its engine while passing me on a country curve by mile nine, filling the air (and my lungs) with thick black smoke.
• I ran out of water at mile 11. Fortunately, I was in the homestretch by then.
• Oh, and it’s definitely time for me to invest in a new pair of running shoes.

There are also plenty of reasons why this should have been a pretty good run.

• It wasn’t the heat. The temperature topped out around 84. It’s been way higher than that lately.
• I didn’t get caught in a sudden downpour. (Hey, sometimes that almost a welcome thing.)
• I’m not battling the flu or a sudden cold.
• My trio of missing toenails (marathon casualties) have nearly grown back.
• My running playlist has several newly added, favorite, kicky, and inspiring tunes.
• I’ve just about found my sustainable long-distance pace again. (No more 5Ks for me till after the long races coming up in the next few months.)

So things looked promising … at first.

But it wasn’t a good run. Yes, I got the miles done, but lots of stuff hurt during and after the trip, although I begrudgingly took plenty of walking breaks.

Not gonna lie.

Some training runs are simply dreadful. And we may never know why. But the victory comes in going back out there again next time … with a vengeance.

And although this run was ridiculously rotten, I don’t regret it at all. Ugly miles are still miles. Even the worst run counts, and getting it done brings its own reward.

Images:

Adapted from public domain photo

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