I’m leaning strongly toward running the Badger Mountain Challenge 50K next year. Sign-ups open in November, and by then I’ll know if I’m prepared and willing to do the work to train for that kind of event.

The past two days, I felt a twinge in my right hip. Monday, I stretched it at lunch. That made it feel better for the rest of the day, but I felt it again in the evening. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to ride to work this morning. I did – with no trouble, even – but this was a warning.

Strength training is always an after-thought for me. It’s the first thing I cut when I’m feeling pressured. I’ve gotten away with it, with a few notable exceptions (like an IT band so messed up I walked almost all of the run portion of my first Olympic-distance triathlon).

Training for a 50 km trail run – with about 5,000′ of elevation gain, over rough trails – will not allow me to do this. At a minimum, I need to strengthen my core to survive this training; I also need to add in strength training to make sure my body is strong enough to have the endurance.

Oh yeah, and since I keep complaining about my belly, it’s worth noting that strength training is a great way to increase my basal metabolic rate. Winner all around!

Except, of course, that there are only so many hours of the day, and only so many days each week. So, something will have to give.  In light of this, I’ve decided that I’m willing to give my “I must ride my bike twice a week and swim at least once a week” stance on training for a run. Yes, I shouldn’t just “give up” swimming, or I risk losing some of the gains I made this year. And I truly love my bike. But training for BMC50K is going to take a LOT out of me.

And in that spirit, I did a core workout in my office at lunch today. It’s brief, but I’ve felt it after doing it before. And it’s a start. There’s no good excuse for me not doing that workout at lunch a few days a week. It’s on my list.

My 50-year old body needs me to remember I’m going to do best if I treat it well. If I ignore the basics, I’m going to suffer –  in a variety of ways. I only need to strength train a couple of times a week to make a noticeable difference in performance, and that should help with injury prevention, as well.

NO EXCUSES!