I'll take it!

Today I had my first long run in a couple of weeks.  I wasn't able to get out as much this past week and a half due to many reasons, weather, schedule, cycle time, yadda yadda yadda.

It's all excuses we say to make it alright to skip a run.  The weather here the past week has been atrocious!  Raining buckets with cold blustery wind, just doesn't make for good or even fair running conditions when your only time to run is during your lunch time.  Ugh...sopping wet, yuck!  My evenings are filled with studies and classes right now, so evening runs are not an option for me, not to mention I'm at work at 6:15am everyday.  Therefore, in order to get a run in I have to do it during my lunch.  Doesn't give me a whole lot of time to get changed, get out to run, get back, freshen up and change.  I can squeeze in a couple of miles, but that's about it, nothing long range, I have to keep my runs to around 30-35 minutes.  So the thought of coming back to work drenched from running in the pouring rain is just plain no bueno!

So today I woke up naturally, no alarm.  Kissed my hubby goodbye as he went to work, then laced up my shoes and went for a run.  Just a casual loop around some hilly parts of Bellevue.  It is so tough to find flat places around here.  Everywhere you go you hit hills, whether be rolling or straight up hills of death to your legs.  Yeah, awesome huh?

So I took a leisurely run to work the dust off my legs from doing no runs, yes...I said it, NO RUNS since last Wednesday.  I hang my head in shame for taking so long to get out on a run!!!  My legs reminded me how long it had been since they had a workout and damn, I fought for every stride.  It wasn't a pretty run, but hell, I'll take it!

I just need to get into more of a routine with my running.  I have races as goals to keep me focused on something because I know myself well enough that if I have no goal set, I will fall off the wagon, it's just my nature.  So I have races set, but no training schedule really.  I need to get on that and get a schedule working.  I find I do best when I'm told when to do something by a certain time, that way I know I've got deadlines I need to meet.  What is the best for you?  What helps motivate you when you have far off goals and you're not quite sure how to attack them?