I love running. And I am really starting to feel like an ultra runner. Last night I decided to run 30 miles. I know I am a bit crazy, b/c I ran it on a treadmill.....it was raining (thunder and lightning) and very muggy out. I wanted to run, and I figured using a treadmill would give me a better mental workout. I think my mental game is down right now. I need to work on mental strength maybe even more then I need to work on endurance or speed at this point. So off to the gym I went. I forced my self to go slow for the first hour- taking 1:01:21 to get to 7.5miles. The treadmill I was running on only let me run up to 1:02 at a time, so I had to restart about every hour. After the second hour (7.75 in 1:01:39- still slower then I felt like going), I refilled my water bottles and started again. I think it took me maybe 2mins total stopping to do this. When I run on a treadmill, I keep the incline at 1% (higher if I want hills, duh). I started into the third hour-ish set feeling even better then I had the 1st hour. This sorts puzzled me. Why do I feel looser and stronger after running over 15 miles???? At this point, I told myself if I run at lest 25miles I could have a cold beer with my dinner at home. After running 23 miles (last 7.75 in 1:00:08), I wanted to run a few hard miles. Really, I wanted to run harder then I did. But I don't want to push a long run like a race, so I didn't let myself run under 7min miles. When I got to 29miles, I told myself I HAD to run the next mile easy to cool down. If I was racing I would have pushed hard for 2 more miles, but this was a workout. I finished the last 7 miles in 52:22, feeling ready to stop but knowing I hadn't pushed my limits.

I think I will try to race my next ultra this way. Taking it super easy at first and then kicking hard at the end. I have a lot of leg strength, and I think kicking it in will work for me. I know treadmills are tons easier then running trails. But I still feel like I can run much better in a race then I have yet. I want to figure out how to get everything in line to race well. Maybe I just need more experience. But I do plan on getting this all figured out.

Oh how I love running.