My first run after a bike ride, even if it comes two days later, is hard. I don't know why. It's probably dehydration, but maybe it's just general fatigue. The older you get, the more recovery time you need after a vigorous effort. A few minutes ago, I completed a 6.6-mile run. I have two races Thursday morning and need some training miles. Unfortunately, I waited too long to get out. It's warm (upper 60s), sunny, and windy. It would have been much easier on me if I had run this morning, when it was foggy and cool. By the time I got started this afternoon, my body would have preferred a nap to a long run. Here, in case you're interested, is the inner dialogue that took place between miles three and four:
Wimp: I'm going to walk for a few feet.
He-man: No, you're not!
Wimp: Why not? The run isn't timed. Who cares whether I walk for a few feet? It'll feel good.
He-man: That doesn't matter. The point isn't to feel good; it's to get a workout.
Wimp: Come on! Don't be so rigid. Nobody will know. I'll still be able to write "6.6" in my log, even if I walk part of it.
He-man: I will know, dammit. What sort of precedent are you trying to set for those new shoes you're wearing?
Wimp: Please. The shoes won't know.
He-man: Listen; just keep moving. It's a matter of self-respect. Don't be a wimp like Joe. Don't be a fair-weather athlete like Julius. Don't be a sack of potatoes like Randy. Don't be a whiner like Phil.
Wimp: Oh, great, now you're insulting my friends as well as me.
He-man: Just shut up and keep moving! We shouldn't even be talking about this. You'll get through this rough spot and feel good by the four- or five-mile marker.
Wimp: Why are you like this? You're worse than a drill sergeant! You're worse than Bobby Knight, for God's sake!
He-man: Those guys get results, don't they?
Wimp: I hate you.
And so it goes.
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 