I’m not happy with my workouts the last two weeks leading up to Memorial Day. I had a goal of working on my speed but it just hasn’t been there. I’m going to write it off as post marathon fatigue. I’m sure that’s a thing – PMF. If not, it should be.

I ran 12 miles today and left my watch in its charger. I just enjoyed the run. 12 miles is a good workout regardless the pace. And part of fatigue can be mental, it’s hard to know the difference. I’ve been tracking my pace and weight so much lately. That’s not something I normally do and it’s exhausting. Felt good to just run. I honestly think it was my best training run out of the 12 runs I’ve had since the Colorado Marathon. I averaged a 10 minute pace but had some really good tempo runs as part of it.

I switched roles between my thighs and hamstrings, letting them take turns in recovery. I will switch their focus like that if I’m racing. I’ll try to rely on my thighs to get me through most of the first four miles. And I’ll leverage my hamstrings to add speed to my downhill 2-mile finish. I’ll use both muscle groups though at all times in the race, to allow one muscle group to recover if needed. I also practiced maintaining cadence by keeping it quick when I shortened my stride. It’s a rhythm thing, I don’t track the average cadence metric as I run. I’m not looking for perfection. I’m just trying to stay in-tune to my body.

And you know, the BB10K is a party. 50,000 runners all on one street is a celebration of running. That’s the vibe. If my legs don’t show up to race on Monday, I’ll still enjoy the festival.

I read my post-race blog reports of my last few BB10Ks. I ran last year but then hadn’t run since 2017. My 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017 runs were all good runs, all around a 7 min/mile pace. They all had good 2-mile legs launching down 13th St. from High Street. I walked it in 2014 but that’s the time period I was last in what I consider to be racing shape. Assuming a senior can pretend to ever be in racing shape.

That’s how I like to run the BB10K. I like to think of myself as racing it. Especially those final two miles. And to run hard enough the first 4 that I’ll be in position to place well for my age. I know, it’s childish. But it’s who I am. I also know that I might not feel like racing at all, once I’m queued up in the starting corral. That’s where the mental fatigue shows up. It’s sapping my confidence. The spirit to race. Sometimes you never know yourself what mindset you’ll be in until after the first mile.

I think I’ll know if I show up to race, by the time I’m in the corral. If I’m seriously warming up, that will tell me my body has made its decision. That it’s going to give racing a shot. I’ll have a one and a half mile trot from the car lot to warm up. And a chance to use the porta-potties in the Home Depot parking lot. If I don’t push myself in the first four miles, or if I do, either way, I’m racing the final two miles. I only run this 10K for those last two miles.

I’m probably going to hike Sunday with Karen on the Sourdough trail. I’ve been standing on a ladder all day painting the kitchen ceiling. The trail will be good recovery and prep for Monday.