Running Against Old Man Winter

Global warming - sure doesn't feel like it out there! Weather can always be a hindrance to our training for the Triple Crown and this weekend's frosty temperatures certainly are proof of that. Saturday morning was a tough day to run. When I woke up, under my warm covers and with the wind howling outside, I contemplated every excuse I could muster not to run. I decided to drive (past the bank signs reading 13 degrees) over to Fleet Feet with the hope of running 8-10 miles and then grab my normal cup of coffee from Heine Brothers (we are a coffee group that happens to run!) Normally at 7 am we have 10-15 runners raring to go, on Saturday there were 2 others! Pam and Dave are the 2 fastest runners in our group right now and it would have been tough to keep up with them. I wished them well on their run and tried to figure out my options - I could go out on my own in the freezing temperature or head home back under those warm coves. I did neither! Thank goodness for the indoor track at Milestone Health and Fitness, I drove over to the gym and got my miles in under much cozier conditions (I'm sure one of my fellow runners will give me grief about not "roughing" it, but hey the jacuzzi afterwards sure felt better than frostbite.)

The bottom line I've learned in running is that the weather is rarely ideal for us. You constantly have to adjust. The Papa Johns 10 miler last year comes to mind when the temperatures were in the high 80's and the humidity was brutal (hey at least there was a ton of pizza at the finish!) I know last year's Anthem 5k featured torrential type rains. We can always hope that the weather will be to our liking but with the unpredictable Louisville weather, we runners need to be prepared for anything!

In closing, I have the utmost respect for all those that braved the cold this weekend - I saw a few photos in the Courier of runners in Seneca Park - breath clearly visible! Keep up the good work and remember, things will warm up soon - if they don't, head to your nearest gym!