Prologue for Dirty Dog 10K

This weekend will mark the beginning of the 2008 race season for me. I am excited, but hesitant. The Dirty Dog is a trail run around Mosquito Lake that the girls did last year and couldn't resist this year.

Last year it was cold and I mean (-) temperatures with the windchill, but this year we are expected to have 25-38 degrees and sun. Last year I had trained poorly. I had bitten off more than I could chew, with too much mileage and not enough cross training and rest. I was literally a few steps away from tendonitis. This year I have managed to avoid running with my friends to stay on my own training schedule. Most of them run in the early a.m., but my schedule revolves around the night so I run after work at about 11:00 p.m. on work nights and hit the hay around 2:00 a.m. Yes, it seems weird, but it works for me. I am getting enough rest then by sleeping until 10:00 am and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, except for the really good Left Hand stout beer I had last night.

I must say that overall my training for the month of January was a success.
- Goal on bike for Jan was 24o miles for the month. I have 259 and plan on cycling today
- Finally got a HR monitor to train in z4 and stop slogging in z2.
- Running was based on frequency (# of days) not by mileage, 19/31 days for a total of 88 miles.
- Have incorporated Long runs, tempos, and hill runs
- Incorporated corework & lifting into schedule on an irregular basis.... but it's there.
- Managed to pull nearly 50% of training days as 2-a-days
- Dropped a few lbs. and firmed up the bum (BONUS)

So with that said I am prepared to enjoy a fun run with my pals. I surely am guaranteed a PR for the course too as last year the snow was so deep I spent more time trying not to fall then to run.

Overall this "TRI" thing that we all do has somehow changed for me. It is no longer about this race or that race. I am never going to be the best. I am tired of trying to compete with everyone else. This year it is about me and a healthy mind and body. I want to get better of course and I will, but now it's about enjoying the training path. The runs I do at night after work, the sweating on my carpeting downstairs from my trainer and the great butt I am getting. The races this year will just be an end result of the many hours and days of ENJOYABLE training I put in.