Pushing through hard days,

I've got 4 weeks until my 12 week training/countdown begins to the Eugene Marathon (April 29).  I've run the whole and the half once and I love running races in Eugene.  It's a relatively flat course and running through the city where I grew up and still live.

My training plan is more difficult than any I've pursued in the past, and I need to get up to speed fast.  I'm hoping I will be ready in 4 weeks.  Running lately, especially through the holidays when I've eaten too much crap or running on ice, the thing that I keep remembering is this:

"Running on the hard days makes race day not as hard."

There's nothing easy about running marathons.  But not running through the rain and cold, the tiredness, the low spirits, makes race day easier and more fun. 

01/07:

7 miles, No time (need to replace some batteries).  Beautiful day for a run but my body felt horrible.  I've been running in colder, dryer weather.  Back in Eugene, it's warmer and more humid.  Don't know if that played a role but my lungs felt tight most of the run.  Ran the whole way, guessing I averaged 8:30-9 min./mile.