Fitting in time for fitness (Jan 5)

Got out the door at 5:30 this morning for my first run of the New Year. It was cold for the first mile or so but I was reasonably comfortable after that. I've figured out the best way for me to dress when the temperatures are near freezing. I managed to talk myself into extending my usual 3.5 mile loop into 4.25 miles. Pace was not my focus this morning. I'm just trying to get back into a three day a week running routine. I've been a two day a week (or less) runner for the last month or so. Rowing is great and will be a major part of my exercise regime this year (I currently have 2,550,219 lifetime rowing meters, I'm aiming to have over 3 million by the end of the year), but miles will be critical to my running success this year. I would like to at least equal my effort at the Monument Avenue 10K in April and would like to survive my first marathon on November. The only way to make both of those goals happen is to spend plenty of time running.

Time to run (or do any workouts beyond my 3 runs each week and going to the gym at lunch) is very much in my things to find this year list. It would be easier to find more time to run if I actually enjoyed the anticipation of hitting the road for a few miles. Mild dread is the way I usually feel as I'm getting prepared for a run. Once I get going I'm usually fine, but getting started is definitely the hardest part of every run. This sense of ugh that comes with planning to run prevents me from exploiting small gaps of time that I could use to run. I realized a year ago that I could get to work early and run around the neighborhood one morning a week. I wouldn't do anything too long, just a few miles, but it would be a chance to get in those extra miles I need to improve my 10K time and make it through the marathon.

There are other small gaps that I could use, but they all require giving up time that I currently use to read. I get my kids on the bus a little after 7 but I don't leave for work until 8 at the earliest. I use that hour to complete the Temple Run 2 daily challenge, take care of a few chores around the house, and read. Sacrificing that reading time is the real challenge. At the same time, I'm talking about 1 day of the week. That's like 15 pages or so of whatever book I'm reading. One day could turn into 2 if I decide to add another rowing day to my routine. I run Monday and Thursday so those days will safely remain reading days. Friday would likely be my extra running day. The reasons for that are related to half day Fridays. I'll leave it at that for now. 

So that would leave Tuesday and Wednesday for rowing. My wife goes to the gym to run with a friend on Wednesday so that's the better day for me to row. I won't be in her way or make her adjust her plans if I hit the rowing machine on Wednesday rather than Tuesday. I could keep my Wednesday reading time if I could get myself out of bed at 5:30. I only need 20 minutes to row. I could shower while my kids are watching TV and waking up and be downstairs to get their breakfast ready with plenty of time to spare. It sounds good in theory, but it's so much harder to actually execute. 

Getting more sleep is one of my goals this year. I've been failing at that miserably the first few days of the year. It's all Jonathan Franzen's fault. I just can't put Freedom down. I stayed up way too late reading the book last night. I finally managed to stop at page 300, but I really wanted to read the next 8 pages to finish the chapter. I decided that I would leave that to the morning when I was in the bathroom before my run (an essential ceremony to perform before any run). I figured it would help me get up in the morning. I knew I would need an extra boost as it was already 11 and my alarm would be going off at 4:50 am. The promise of those 8 pages helped me pull myself out of bed. Then I left for work later than I planned when I got pulled into the next chapter. I made it to work earlier than normal, but Freedom kept me home an extra 15 minutes longer than I planned. I would like to say that I will be going to be early tonight, but I'll probably stay up until 11 again reading that book.

I will likely finish Freedom this weekend. That would put me 1 book in one week. I will not be adjusting my 30 book reading goal. I kept my reading goal relatively low so I would be able to give up some of the time I've spent reading to getting in better shape and getting more sleep. Shifting my patterns and redistributing my time is not something that I can just flip a switch and make happen. I look back at when I started running in the morning or shifted my bedtime from close to midnight to more like 11 as evidence that my current state is malleable, but I also remember how difficult it was to make those changes. My current routine is very well established and it lets me do the things that I like to do. It will be hard to make the changes, but I just have to be consistent and not expect too much too soon. And I need to read a boring book or two as I make the switch.