Week one, run and done...

I consider my running week Monday through Sunday, so week one is now complete, and it was a success.  The running streak is alive with at least a mile run every day this year so far.  (Okay, so it's only been 8 days, but it's a start.)  Today was my long run of the week at 14 miles, and unfortunately I did not enjoy it.  They can't all be winners, though, can they?  It was a high mileage week, 46 miles total.

Is it strange that I actually enjoy the mental struggle of running?  For any non-runners reading this, you might think that the running part is struggle enough, and many times it can be.  This morning, for instance, I just wasn't feeling my normal running groove.  I didn't want to run 14 miles.  But the body is an amazing thing and is capable of so much more than we know--and that's where the mental struggle comes in.  Convincing the body to keep going when it would be so much easier to just stop is a challenge, and one that I am proud to be capable of (on most days).  I may not enjoy it while it's happening, but the accomplishment once I'm done is extremely satisfying.

I have been wondering at what point my minimalist shoes would begin to give me trouble, and I reached that point today.  Friday night at about mile 7.5 of my 8 mile run my feet started to hurt.  Then my right arch cramped bad, really high up.  At first I wasn't sure what I was feeling, but the pain was sharp and came back every few steps.  I made it the final half mile, but I couldn't have gone much further.  The next day was just a 1.4 mile run and I used my regular running shoes, no pain.  So this morning I put my light shoes on again.  I made it about 7 houses down the street and the arch pain was back.  I went around the whole block trying to figure out if I could work out the cramp, whether I should keep going and just call Brian to bring me my other shoes if it got to a point that I couldn't continue.  I was struggling with this decision because I REALLY want to be able to use the minimalist shoes for the marathon.  My regular running shoes now feel like bricks when I run in them.  But the pain would not subside, so I went home and changed shoes.  No arch pain with the other ones.

So my running week is done, just to start over again tomorrow.  I'm missing my Crossfit workouts, because I just can't fit them in with my busy work schedule, and I'm hoping that a month without the core strength training will not negatively impact my running.  We'll see.

Here's to week 2!