Marathon on the Horizon

I'm having that weird panic of going from being way too busy to handle everything to, "Oh My God. You mean all I have to do is run and focus on my real job?" Just a few short weeks ago, I was juggling several bike, run and swim workouts per week along with preparation for the Record-Shattering Turkey Trot. (FYI-It looks like we had about 2,000 more people than last year. That is phenomenal. ) My life feels so uncomplicated at the moment--(well, there's the house thing, but even that's beyond my control. )

I vascillate from feeling completely relieved to being on edge because I'm not doing enough. Now, I know those feelings are completely normal. I'm coming down from a high and trying not to gear up too much since I'm also tapering for the Dallas Marathon. That little part of me just can't stop being vocally annoying. "You should go for a swim. I can't believe your bike is still packed from Florida." etc. You know the voice. However, I'm also trying to listen to my REAL voice. My massage therapist said something on Saturday that really stuck with me. She reiterated that my body is my best personal trainer. It will tell me when it's had enough. Over the last couple of weeks, I've tried to take a little more heed. My body and mind have had enough and my attitudes and efforts are showing it. While I've still run consistently, none of them have felt great. I started back with some official Gazelle workouts this week. While it was great to be back and see so many of my friends and training partners, it's a little frustrating as I know I'm not performing at my best capacity. Every run is a struggle right now mentally and physically. I've lost a little confidence for the Marathon and it really means I have to rest, rest, rest next week!!

Here's a recap of my recent running from the last couple of weeks:

11/18 (one week after Half-Ironman) 15-16 miles...ouchy
11/20 10 mile Recovery Run
11/22 8 Mile Run from Thon's. We did the Turkey Trot course for a sneak peek. Damn that course is hilly! Who designed that?? :-)
11/24 7 Mile Recovery run with Amy--day after Turkey Trot. exhausted.
11/25 14 Mile Mt. Bonnell Run
11/27 Mile Repeats at Zilker...I did 3 repeats (7:11, 6:54, 6:54)...humid. Total 6 1/2 miles
11/29 7 Mile Fartlek Intervals...2 mile warmup followed by 1min fast/1 min slow

I guess looking over that schedule pretty much shows what I need to see. Not only was it a lot of miles, but these have been some tough miles. Over 67 Miles in10 days. duh...

Next weeek is all about massage, nutrition and rest.