I woke up around 7:30 AM this morning, couldn’t get back to sleep but didn’t want to be up early on a dark rainy Saturday morning. I puttered around, answered some email, fed Smacky and gave him his medicine, put some laundry in… started feeling sleepy again, went back to bed.
Then I realized that I would need some calories for the run later, since I had planned on running at some point today, and thought I should get up and eat something. I figured I’d nap for another hour or two. I thought it was smart to do that; I’ve read in Runner’s World that having 200-300 calories before a tough run is a good thing. Of course, they’re talking about running marathons, so I’m not sure it applies, but I did it anyway. Drank a couple of glasses of water, too, to hydrate. Or something.
Best part was waking up a couple of hours later, face down and sprawled in bed, with Smacky sprawled across the back of my head and neck, keeping my ears warm. What a good kitten. It was actually his snoring that woke me; the strange wheezy purr infiltrated my dreams. I had to move carefully because I was afraid if I moved too quickly he would startle and claw me. Funny cat.
And, as a result of the eating and drinking, and maybe the extra sleep, I ran very well today. I tried not to notice how fast I was going, but it’s nearly impossible not to notice when running on the treadmill (too cold and rainy to run outside). I covered 3.1 miles in 30:14, or just a shade over a 9:45 pace. May not seem fast to other runners, but considering how lousy I’ve been doing this winter I’m pretty pleased with my pace and time. It means that whatever has afflicted me is going away, and I can get back to improving again.
Oddly enough, my legs were stiff for almost the first two miles. Didn’t seem like I could really loosen up until the final 3/4 or 1/2 mile. I warmed up and stretched beforehand.