3.5 mi / 5.6 km;
-2F / -19C;
no windchill.
Set out around 3:40am, sockless in Sockwa G4s, beautiful serenity in the cold, dark, winter wonderland. Left foot got a little numb in the big toe's met head towards the end. Much farther and I would've put on my back-up Drymax socks.
I feel like I'm starting to come out of hibernation though. Hopefully I can get in 2-3 more 3-5 mile runs this week, and then start to shoot for 30mpw mileage next week when temps are supposed to get back up around seasonal averages. I can hardly wait to start running bare more consistently. My plantar skin is still calloused, but definitely thinning. Nonetheless, my new G4s have really helped me get over my aversion to running in shoes--I can feel pretty much every bump and contour underfoot, and I'm able to maintain my barefoot form/foot-landing without having to think about it.
These days I've been running without any gadgets, except for on my back-n-forths up in the fairgrounds. It's too much of a hassle to wait for the satellite lock in the cold, and there's no real need for my Garmin anyway on these shorter routes, as the distances are pretty well-known and/or Googlible. Even when I get back to longer routes, I may forgo the Garmin and just look up the route distances on Google Maps™. Perhaps my December-January slacking has gotten me into more of a Zen-like mood, helped me let go of goals and moved me even closer to doing everything by feel rather than numbers.
But without the discipline of goals and numbers, I'll need to deploy the discipline of daily practice. Run and lift everyday, but let the feeling of the day determine how far I run, and how much/hard I lift. I know from experience I need some kind of disciplinary protocol, otherwise sloth will pounce and pin me down again, for weeks, months, maybe even years. I think I'll set the daily minimum at two miles for running, and 10 minutes for lifting. It's amazing how easy it is to lose momentum after just a few days off.
Speaking of which, nothing Sunday, then yesterday, two 1-mile run-commutes and a "Push" ST session (bench press & biceps curls). Now that I'm no longer worried about weights screwing up my left shoulder, I'm edging up closer to my old maxes again. Almost got in a decent pump but I think I'll hold back for at least another week while I figure out where I'm at conditioning-wise.
My daughter says her teacher said the groundhog didn't see its shadow, so spring is on its way.