I've written before about my races. I got involved in Team U last fall and ran the Princeton half marathon. It's fun to write about all of the finish lines and the training, building up to a huge feeling of accomplishment at the end. But, unsurprisingly, running that many miles in a row isn't always smooth sailing.
I ran my third race in Princeton this fall. It was the Princeton half again, but this time I was just tired. I was finding it harder to get excited about the idea of running 13.1 straight miles, and I knew I wasn't as well trained.
I got through the race day, don't get me wrong, but I finished 10 minutes slower. One bonus this time around was the presence of my parents, who drove down, and a few friends who came to cheer me on. The last time I ran the Princeton half, it was the tail end of fall break, so campus was pretty empty.
It was a funny combination, my exhaustion with the whole process combined with that fan-group I had always hoped would be there.
I took a break from running after Oct. 4, when I crossed my most recent finish line. I ran again for the first time today. This time though, I didn't use the running playlist I'd crafted during my first week of training two summers ago and had been using since. I didn't clock my miles either. I just ran comfortably by the canal until I was done. I've been listening to Sia this time on Spotify; did not realize she was this great.
I think I'll try to get back into half marathons. I like them, I really do. It's exciting to get through such an intense process. But I think that to do that, I have to dial down the intensity for the while. To get excited again, it's almost as if I need to stop being so intense so that I can start looking forward to regaining my intensity.
I'll let you know how the process goes.