Treadmill, I hate thee

Week 8-ish of my new running lifestyle and lease on life...

The honeymoon is definitely over. I remember the first weeks when I was running 5, 6, 7 miles a few times a week and feeling like I would be able to take on a triple marathon by March. But, the dozens of logged miles have started to take their toll on these old bones.

The starts of my runs have definitely become more labored and can be likened to the first few cranks of a rusty wheel before things start going smoothly. The bum knee is finally starting to fire up on me, as are the metatarsals in left foot. I have a feeling I may be making a return visit to Mr. Magic at the Runner's Edge to load up on some knee braces and foot pads.

Running upwards of 75 laps around the same track multiple times a week has started to get a little old, I have to say. I thought I would change things up a little this week and try the treadmill. I used to run on the 'mill all the time, but haven't in many months.

Yesterday, I remembered why. If you want the most monotonous, painfully boring experience of your life, run for 45 minutes in place staring at a wall while the red digits in "Distance" climb at an impossibly slow pace killing any notion that you've been running under 10 minute miles. Not even the latest episode of "One Tree Hill" on mute on the T.V. could distract me from checking on my progress every 10 seconds.

While the surface was a little more kind on my joints, I wasn't used to being subjected to a constant speed and I found myself working much harder than usual just to hit my 4 mile goal for the night. By the end, legs screaming, and the front of my shirt so soaked in so much sweat I might as well have been a 400 lbs. man, I wasn't so sure about managing another NINE miles of this...

I'm looking forward to warmer evenings with more light so I can start treading the pavement a bit more. That's going to be its own beast since asphalt is known to be about the WORST surface for your joints, but at least there'll be more to look at to help combat the mental race.

Just no more treadmills, please.

Colossians 1:11: May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy...