Sunday, November 30, 2008

To Quit Or Not To Quit.....

I did 8 miles yesterday. I was suppose to do 10.

I have been rolling around the thought of quitting. Why?? Because the fun has left. Now it is like pulling teeth. My job isn't working with me I have to wait till the next schedule comes out to find out if I get the time off. I lost my room trying to change dates to make the job happy. I can't get E out the door any more. Kids don't want to train any more. Every time I go out and put miles in I nearly get hit by a car. They say they can't see me in my bright yellow running shirt.
I need to go get gear that fits. E needs new running shoes and he won't go get any. I new a new pair that are going to fit.I have lost enough weight that my shoe size has changed. My kids are trying to stay home My daughter asked my best friend if she could stay with them. :(
And there other other things going on too. :( It seems the closer we get more goes wrong. Never mind that when I go the long distance miles I can't keep the 16 minute pace. I will get picked up. And I don't have the support like I use to get from my family. :(

I am going to go down to the post office and start mailing out the shirts. I will e- mail you when I mail them, and I will keep everyone posted on What I do decide to do.

14 comments:

mgreene said...

I know what you mean about nearly getting hit (my wife and I have actually both been hit). That's why I do most of my training on trails now - better surroundings and no cars. As far as the pace goes, you've got to train fast in order to run fast - no other way.

Remember, you'll have the adrenaline factor on race day which will speed you up some. And I find it easier now to run with others than by myself, so that may help you as well. While your personal training has really helped with the weights, etc. I think you really need a knowledgable running trainer to help along with that aspect.

Rae! said...

In the gym I do hill sprints,I do sprints, I do all kinds of speed work but when I use it our doors, my breathing takes over. I have been told it is anxiety. I work really hard.
I will have to look into it.

mgreene said...

You should prolly keep a log of your times in order to track your progress. Also, when you say sprints, do you have any measure of how far you go? Normally intervals are 400m, 800m, 1200m, or 1 mile in length. Start out with a few and build the number of repetitions and then keep up with your times. Mix and match distances each session and try to eventually build up to 3 miles total speed work per session (i.e., 3x1 mile or 6x800m or 12x400m). You race times will greatly improve if you religiously do weekly speed sessions.

Rae! said...

They have been 2 minutes on,one minute rest for 30 minutes,I am working on getting it up to 5 minutes for every incline increase. I posted the workout last week. I think. and my miles total 2.5 for the 30 minutes. Starting at incline 5 to 10.

Eric said...

One thing I've learned... er, am still learning... Frustration is part of it. Stick with it through the other frustrations of life and you will be glad you did.

Mike's advice is all good. Like he says, a partner or group is key. I have days that I do NOT want to go at it, at all. When someone's waiting on me, it makes it harder to give in to the temptation even to snooze because I don't want to keep them waiting.

If you can do some outdoor speed work, that will help a ton. I've even gotten to where I think speed work is fun.

HANG IN THERE!! I'm rooting for you!

mgreene said...

You should probably start keeping up with just the fast miles during an interval session as well. This is where your improvement will come. And Eric is right (just like I've been telling Jonathon for months) - the treadmill is better than nothing, but it's NOT the same as running outdoors. I'd use your Garmin and download and keep the logs to look back on.

Chris said...

I've been thinking lately....I've done two half's this year and now the Disney half...what do I do after that? How do I keep myself motivated to get out there when the novelty has worn off? I came to a conclusion yesterday when we recieved a phone call that my brother in-law was in the hospital with an apparent heart attack (I think he's 40). It occurred to me that it's my responsibility to be the healthiest I can be for not just myself, but for my family. So whatever it takes to keep myself excited about it (whether anyone else is or not) I'm going to do it, no turning back. that's even if I end up with a worse half time than my previous.

The quote that always seems to keep me on the level is the one that goes something like "The journey of a 1000 miles begins with one step". Keep the journey going, it's a lifetime goal..much bigger than just this race.

Let me know if there is anything I can do to help! Phone call, or whatever. :-) We need ya RAE!

Craig Wheeler said...

Hang in there, Rae. We all go through slumps when things go bad and the motiviation is gone.

I agree with several of the previous comments...
- Adrenaline will kick in on race day.
- Track your progress. Seeing improvement in yourself can be a great motivator to do even better.

Also, don't worry about getting picked up. It's better to have tried and not met your goal than to have given up when 90% of the training is behind you. Adrenaline and excitement will kick in on race day, other people will be racing with you, and you will do better than normal.

Don't let your boss get you down. Work can be a bummer but you can't let it stand in the way of your personal goals.

Keep with it. You have made great progress on the weight loss and I'm sure if you keep up your training you will lose even more. If the race isn't a motivator for you, then let health be the motivator.

[rich] said...

Hi - hope it all works out for you, it's a long hard road you've been down...

Anonymous said...

Rae - listen to me. You've said this to me, and I'll say this to you. We've been building to this moment, you and I. We've been training - we've had hardships - we've had ups and downs - but....

...are you listening to me?

...are you listening CLOSELY?

DISNEY PEOPLE DO NOT GIVE UP.

That's it. Just that simple. No platitudes - no well wishes - no suggestions. You don't need those. You know in your heart you can do this - and so do I. We'll do it together, and toast our success at Illuminations.

Because DISNEY PEOPLE DO NOT GIVE UP.

Now. Post again. Tell us you're in this heart mind and soul.

Your team NEEDS you Rae.

MAIN STREET AWAITS

Princess Fee said...

I've only just read your blog - I really hope that you decide to keep going. You've came SO far and you've helped SO many people along your road and journey!

It's totally okay, and normal, to get slumps and to feel like giving up. I've had a few weeks where I've been slowly getting out of the running, just doing little bits, but I realise how far I've come and I have to keep doing it. Once you get out the slump, you might find you want to do it all again - get back into it. Just this week I've started to find the joy in running a bit more - I know it'll come back to me.

I really hope you don't give up - like it has been said - Team Voice needs YOU!!!

DebWDW said...

You are our inspiration, so YES, you have to be there! You are not the only one who might not finish the race -- there's a few of us on the bubble.

But it's been an amazing year of training -- and that matters way more than finishing! You've done a TON of work this year, and I KNOW you have it in you to gut it out on race day!

Bottom line, all of us are in this together, and that means you need to be on that starting line with us.

Anonymous said...

Oh Rae, it would be so sad if you didn't come. You have worked so hard for this and done so much for everyone else too. I really hope that everything works out and you can come.

Kate

Jeff W said...

Rae!,

Hey gal hang in there. Your support has ment a great deal to so many of us. You're are captain and lead cheerleader.

Stress can really zap you and steal your joy. If you get down, it can be hard to climb back out of it. Try not to let that happen.

I have been stuggling some weird apathy regarding training. My arch has had me really bumming out and not not wanting to train.

While on the dreadmill today, my thoughts turned to whether my slow down in training was letting down the team. But then I realized that as long as I did not give up I was not letting anyone down, including myself.

You have come such a long way in these past months. Don't loose your steam. I'm proud of you my friend, and I expect to see you crossing that finish line.