Relax, The Pol-R Express and myself are fine. The "wiped out" refers to my energy levels as opposed to an "agony of defeat" crash. It's been a long week, as my posting shows.
I'm learning a lot about training for ultramarathons. First and foremost, it is, perhaps, more demanding than training for Ironman. While I have yet to spend 10 hours training in a single day, there's something to be said for the rigors of running three-and-a-half hours on Sunday after running four hours on Saturday. I have a far greater understanding of why Friday and Tuesday are off days.
I'm learning a lot about myself, though.
One of the simple truths about Ironman is that most participants look forward to the bike, so long as it means they can stop swimming. Similarly, they begin to relish the marathon if for no other reason than it represents the opportunity to get off the bike. I remember being absolutely overjoyed heading into T2, despite my concern over the looming 26.2 mile run.
My training for the ultramarathon doesn't have that aspect. I wake up on Sunday fairly wiped out from Saturday's run. And I know I have to go put more stress on an already tired body. Unlike Ironman, it is the same stress on the same body parts.
And while I can complete a marathon with little residual pain, stacking marathon distance training runs on top of each other is another story.
So, I find myself napping just about every chance I get. In fact, I find myself napping in some very odd circumstances. Last night, my daughter kept waking me up as I was dozing off while she was saying her prayers. And while I was reading her bedtime story. And while she was trying to wake me up.
And since I am both a lunatic and a slow learner, I am contemplating "kicking it up a notch." In September, I will be running a "marathon and a half." As part of the Fox Cities Marathon, I will run the half-marathon backwards, arriving at the starting line just prior to the start of the official marathon (hopefully). In October, I will complete a 50-mile ultramarathon, though I'm torn on which one.
For giggles, I am considering continuing the insanity through the end of the year. In November, I would run 60 miles, just to keep the progression going. And in December, I would run 80 miles, or twice my age.
For an encore, I would then sleep the entire month of January.
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