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Apparently I’m a glutton for punishment. Saturday I ran a 5k that was almost as hilly as my last 5k. This one started with a steep uphill for half a mile (though not as steep as the last mile of the last 5k), then back down that hill, a mile of rolling hills, back up that first steep hill, and a good strong finish down the hill.
In my defense, I didn’t know the course would be so steep. While we’ve been to the orchard this race wound through, there wasn’t a course description or map, so I didn’t really know what to expect.
Despite the unexpectedly tough course I feel good about how I ran during the race.
But my running didn’t stop at the finish line. Since my half marathon training plan called for an 8 mile long run on Saturday, I drove to a nearby park (no way was I going to run this race backwards) and ran 5 more miles on a bike path. After all the hills, the flat-ish bike path was a nice change.
I feel like my life is revolving around longer and longer workouts and whether they’re hilly enough to prepare me for the races I’ve signed up for.
This Saturday I’m running a 5k that goes in to, then back out of, a quarry. I’m not sure of the elevation change, but I am sure it won’t be an easy race. And in a couple more weeks I’ll be running a local 5k that I’ve run the last 5 years so I know to expect the tough hills that are in it.
The Glacier half I’m running in June has some hills, and while they don’t look too bad, I still need to prepare for them. The Shenandoah half, on the other hand, does look bad, and I am not ready for that one yet. It’s not till the Saturday before Labor day, so I still have time to prepare.
The hill workouts and longer mileage workouts are both physically and mentally difficult. It’s also a challenge to find the time to fit them all in.
Despite these challenges, I keep going. I have goals I want to accomplish, and I know I need to put in the time and be prepared if I want to achieve those goals without injury.
It’s not easy, but I know I can do hard things.
I’m working on teaching this concept to our kids. Our weekly hikes are one way I’m going about it, but I’m also teaching by example. I’m hoping that they will see me working hard to accomplish difficult goals and realize that they can do anything they put their minds to as well.
How do you teach your children that they can do hard things?