Settling into the plan...

This morning when my alarm woke me up, I did not want to get out of bed. I laid there contemplating the situation. I could just sleep in another half hour and then run this afternoon. It’s only 3 miles.

Eventually, I got up (late) and got my run in. Routine is the name of the game.

Officially, this is week 5 of my training plan. And officially, I’m starting to feel the fatigue. It’s not anything major, it’s more like little things. For instance, instead of waking up exactly 8 hours after I went to bed, my alarm clock wakes me up and I feel like I could sleep 9 or 10 hours. I usually bounce and run up the 4 flights of stairs to my condo, but this week (particularly immediately after my runs) my legs feel heavy and dead as I climb the steps. I’ve also got a little tweak in my right hamstring. Nothing severe, but noticeable. I got my 10 buck gift certificate for Dicks the other day, so a new pair of shoes might help that issue.

Strangely enough, this is what I like about running. I like having to get up earlier because I’ve got to run 7 miles before work. I like feeling minor aches and pains from a hard workout the day before. I like knowing that it’s only going to get tougher and test me. I enjoy looking at my printed out training plan and seeing in a few weeks, that I have to start running 10 miles on Tuesdays and eventually an 8x800 interval workout, and 7x hill workouts. That’s right, I said I like looking at my training plan. I know, I was a bit of a curmudgeon when it came to using a training plan, but now, I’m a total believer. This morning, I even decided that I’m going use Hal’s Advanced II plan to train for my next marathon (which, is likely going to be the Philly Marathon).

One strange thing, though, is my appetite. Usually, the more I run, the hungrier I am. I usually crave starchy, salty foods. But the past two weeks, I’ve gone home after work with a general nauseous feeling, not wanting to eat anything for dinner. If you know me, at all, you know this is very strange. I’m the person that when someone asks me if I’m hungry, my response is… “I can always eat.” I’m not worried though, I’m sure this will resolve itself.

Tomorrow is a 35 minute tempo run and then this weekend is a 7 mile pace run and a 14 mile long run. Fatigue or no fatigue, I gots a long way to go…