There’s still a day left in this training week, but tomorrow is a rest day but it’s already looking kind of crowded. The week is ending on a less-than-stellar note: first, I’m back over 180 pounds today, and second, I’ve self-diagnosed pes anserine bursitis in my right knee. But alas, it’s not all bad news.

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I’d call it a good week.

I’m using the same training program I used for the Badger Mountain Challenge, with some adjustments. My overall goal is to be fit enough to complete Millersylvania rather than trying to get a great time. To that end, I’ve given myself permission to mix up the long workouts with other aerobic workouts like snowshoeing & Nordic skiing. The Cascades received a LOT of snow over the past few weeks, so I’m happy to have the ‘freedom’ to go play in the snow if time allows.

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Calendar called for a 5-mile ‘steady pace’ run. I guessed 13:30/mile was a good steady pace for me. I was close — I think I managed 13:48/mile — but I’ll probably dial it back to 14:00/mile for the near future. No point in burning up my legs in the first months of training.

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I rang in 2020 as most grumpy, middle-aged people do: cursing those who set off fireworks at midnight. The Nomads’ annual Greet the Dawn on McBee was a 7:00 a.m. meetup, meaning I had a 5:30 a.m. wakeup. I enjoyed neither. But my hike up, and run down, McBee was a great way to start my year.

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I spent a week hiking a section of the Pacific Crest Trail in September. It was only seven days, but it’s still with me. There hasn’t been a day I’m not transported back to some moment or some place on the trail. I spend idle moments daydreaming about future adventures. I’m already actively planning next year’s adventures. All I want to do is be back on the trail.

I remain in civilization under protest.

I’m normally loathe to talk about dieting because I figure no one’s particularly interested. But I’m going to make an exception today because I’m feeling pretty good about what’s going on and I hope writing about it will keep that moving forward.

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In the hope of regaining some core strength prior to starting training for Millersylvania 50K, I challenged myself to plank five minutes a day every day in December. I cannot hold a plank for five straight minutes, so I’m doing it as long as I can hold good form, and as many times as necessary during the day to get to five minutes.

This is hard, y’all! I’ve also learned it’s not a great idea to try planking after drinking a couple glasses of wine. 😹

This was day two, and I think I could feel a little soreness in my core after just one day. That’s encouraging! Thursday will likely be a tough day as I’ll be going straight from court to driving my mom to Harborview, then heading home. I may be getting home late. Maybe I’ll bust out some planks in the neuroscience waiting room. 😉

I’m having a confusing bout of doing everything I can to mess up my efforts to prepare for training for an ultra next summer. I’m not sure what’s going on in my head because I usually don’t get stuck in self-defeating behavior patterns for this wrong. I’m hopeful that if I write about it, it’ll help get my head in a better, healthier place.

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This run was fun. There were moments I felt fluid & fast. I’m trying to make up fitness I lost over the past five months. Running has felt like a workout — at times it felt like punishment — so this was a huge emotional boost.

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