A blog reader named Jason commented on my Motivation Issues post that I must be human after all. hahaha, that made me smile. yes, I am human, and I am totally struggling lately.
I ran my normal 9 mile long run today. The snow that fell in Chapel Hill overnight rapidly melted, so it was not a fun snowy day run. It was hard. I got tired. My legs ached. I wanted to stop. I actually did stop and walk up some hills. It was not a good run. But I finished it.
I did not wear my watch because I did not want to know my pace or time. Glad for that, because it would probably really bother me. I’m sure it was a PR in slowness. I’m sure I’ll get out of this slump. Right?
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I'm right there with you, Carol...slump city. However, even those PR's in slowness are so much better than couch time, right? We'll get out of this soon! Until then, just keep swimming...or running...or cycling...or P90Xing. What did you say in an earlier post??? "Relentless Forward Motion"! Hang in there!
Try eating extra calories of whatever food you crave (probably salt or other electrolyte). P90X is deceptively hard on your muscles -- Whenever I add a couple of the X vids to my routine my running immediately takes a hit. My body feels ~great~ but I just can't make myself run even one more hill! What gets me over the hump (that will last weeks if untreated) is more calories and more salt (I'll eat a large-ish bag of Cheetos 24 hrs before a med-high intensity run).
I know it sounds ridiculous, but Cheetos are the only snack I ever really, deeply crave and I only want them at times like you're having, when my performance is way down and I'm not seriously 'in training'. I'm pretty sure it's the salt I'm really after but the extra cals and fat give me something to burn while running (or maybe that's just my justification).
Then back to lots and lots of protein at night 'cause P90X really exhausts your muscles.
Yea it's impossible to get in quality miles outside right now.
It seems that a lot of your frustration lies in the fact that you are comparing your current ability to what you used to do. You should go back to your early blog posts and see how you are doing compared to where you were when you started. I'm sure it will be tough to get going, but you should try drawing a line in the sand and say, ok, this is where I am now, let me measure my improvement from now and build from there. Forget about what you used to do, and focus on how much better you can be than you are at the moment. You have proof that you can do it, let that motivate you.
I'm sure you bust through this slump. It could just be the effects of seasonal affective disorder. Spring/Summer will be here in no time.