Today the schedule calls for my running four miles. I took 20 minutes to warm up first, walking and jogging a mile until my heart rate was up and my muscles were warm; then I stretched; and then I started the machine over again to begin my four miles of training. I jogged between 4.4-4.8 mph most of the first half, and then 5-5.5 mph the second, with a brief stint at 6 mph at the end. I tracked my resting heart rate before I began (62 bpm), after the warm up (80 bpm), during the first half of my run (146 bpm) and at the most intense parts towards the end (154). I never let myself get huffy - so I'd stay in that artificial fever as long as possible - and I never let myself cool down too much during walk breaks (at 3.5-3.8 mph).
After three miles, a jerky guy came into the gym and asked me if I was watching the TV. I said I was. He repeated the question, forcing me to take my focus off of running, and the TV, and breathing. I repeated my answer, yes, I'm watching - but he came over and took the remote from my treadmill anyway. I pulled my ear bud out and said, "I'm watching this!" as if he hadn't heard me the first two times. He wasn't even dressed for a workout; he was wearing a sweater, T-shirt and shorts! He said he was just going to use the remote to change the channel on the other TV and I had to explain, while running, that there's a separate remote for the other TV and if he hit the button on that remote it would... but it was too late. He'd turned my TV off, and I had inadvertently, in twisting around to address him, also hit the "emergency off" button on my own machine. Argh! I swore out loud and the sweater guy looked scared.
I had to try to remember what my time was when he'd rudely stepped on the scene, reset the clock, reset myself. I was super sweaty and challenged today and the 30 second break gave me just enough time to really consider calling it a day... My eyes were burning. How could I go another mile!? Could I count that warm-up mile towards the four? Would that be cheating? I thought of the 5 mile race I have coming up on Jan 9th, less than 2 weeks away, and decided I'd better carry on or I just wouldn't be ready for that. If I couldn't pull through four miles today, how would I do more - outdoors - just because it was being timed? I did four miles twice last weekend! Was Gordon's schedule ruining me!? Preparation is everything. Practice. Baby steps. Not - giving up. I decided to have faith in the program and go back on.
The last mile turned out to be the easiest. It always is! I ran faster, which I really do love it's just a matter of getting enough oxygen! I let myself strain more. I drank less. I glared out of the corner of my eye at the sweater guy who was watching football, walking on the treadmill at 3.0, blood rushing to his face. I wondered if he felt bad at all. Afterwards I stretched a lot and when I went to the elevator, he actually followed me and said sorry he'd broken my concentration. I forgave him and told him I was training for "something" and so that's why I'd been so intense about it. He nodded but didn't ask what. I had the feeling his wife had told him to get out of the apartment for a while and he'd had no idea where to go, and so he'd gone to the gym! Now here he was letting the ladies down left and right. Poor dude. Working out in a sweater.
Tomorrow is a day off but I plan to do stretching and strength training with my trusty gym rat log to guide me.
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