Learning more. Am I a quitter? No. I just think I am.

RUN 14.1 miles in 2:15
FUN CX bike clinic!

Ha, first time I've listed FUN as something I did :)

The run was going to be a flattie at FoPa, a rest of the legs and feets without the strain and pounding of hills and rocks. But then I learned about the CX clinic in QP and changed plans. Sure, my goal of 20 miles done in 4 miles loops doesn't sound fun, but I did it anyway. I knew that if I ran FoPa, I wouldn't make the extra trip to QP. I'd just go home. Refer to yesterday's post about not trying hard enough.

The first 2 loops fit my goal of steady. I always forget how steep the hills are in QP (DH and I walked them last weekend with the doggie, got a fresh look at them) and it surprised me a bit to realize how close some of these hills are to Poto! So if I'm going to do the 30 miler in November (and BTW I signed up for this today!!) I need to learn how to run those hills without burning up. So the goal was run the hill without going lactic. I was doing great. I was tired, running good but not pushing it, and going about as fast as I though I could given yesterday's ride and my MT50 recovery.

Then in the 2nd mile of the 3rd loop a guy came up alongside and said Good Pace. We chatted a few seconds, and I expected that he'd drop me and continue on. But we stayed together. Let me edit that--I sped up. He's a new runner, just lost 30lbs, and is running his first HM next weekend. BRR got him running more, he's learning Pose, he's in Hoka's, and it was all new and exciting for him. LOVE IT! He didn't seem excited the same way I did. I loved the Good For You aspect, he was loving our quick pace, the form, the glide down the hills. He was focused on the run. My head was doing it's usual unicorns and rainbows shit.

So we tore up my last 5 miles! I said twice that if he wanted to go on without me he could, and once I said I need to slow down. But he didn't, and I didn't. He's gonna nail his goal of 8 m/m next weekend. Am I'm walking away with another lesson learned: I can push harder. It's there. I just need to tap into to and not be afraid to try.

Which brings me to another lesson. What a weekend. Let's get to the CX clinic. I had many moments in the clinic where I wanted to stop. Not because I was too tired (although I'm sure fatigue fed the desire). My brain was thinking "yeah I just ran a lot and I biked yesterday, so I'm gonna skip these fast laps". Seriously!? Why did I want to quit? Because I was afraid to not do good. I was afraid of going slow. Afraid of failing.

That's stupid, it's like losing the group ride. How do you fail a bike clinic? By QUITTING. I'm happy to report I didn't quit, I did the fast laps. I was passed, many times. But I did it. I have a lot to learn, I had fun, and I'm so surprised at what this entire weekend did for me.