Florida is for LOVING

I have been a resident of Florida for nearly 3 years and that makes me an almost-native. I like how weird this state is and how peoples interpretation nearly always wrong. The swamp sucks its people in from all over the world. Yep, I certainly got sucked in... and I like it. Florida likes really hard too, so come on down and visit us. We only feed the haters to the sharks.

Run - 39:47 - 5.15 miles - 7:43 Pace - 129 avg hr
Taper run to keep the legs loose.

A1A Marathon - Nervous - Am I Weird?

Well, Sunday is closing in FAST. I am really more unsettled about this marathon than any that I can remember. In the old days I toed the starting line, well trained and confident. It didn't matter if I reached my goals or not - I was happy and I vigorously attacked each race.

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Since my accident my mental state has changed. I do not have the abilities that I once had and even though I train passionately (more than ever), I just haven't regained my old fitness. I know that I should just relax, but one thing hasn't changed about me: I fight - and even though I am only competing with myself, I still fight to win. Ha! I must like beating myself up.

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I don't get it. I really don't know why my running hasn't returned to levels comparable to before my traumatic brain injury. I run more miles than I ever did before - I work hard! In the big picture, it should be a small aspect of my life. Unfortunately it is not. For some unidentified reason, I have not stopped searching for Dick Dime. The person I remember and the version of me that I liked best.

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Since recovery began, I have run 4 marathons. My fastest was last year at A1A. I made big improvements over my previous post injury marathons and even though I was still 30 minutes slower than before my accident, I was happy and charged up to continue my forward progress. Since then, I haven't let up and my training has improved. However, my confidence has not returned and I swim in a swamp of doubt. I really struggle with this.

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Is this a common mental dilemma for brain injury survivors? Is it normal - I do not want to be weird? If somebody out there who has suffered a TBI or know someone who has, and happens upon this rant, please comment and give me your opinion. I don't know what is normal. Did I say, I don't want to be weird?

Run - 1:01:07 - 7.31 miles - 8:21 Pace - 126 avg hr
Got out fairly early today. Unfortunately the wind was howling and I worked harder than I wanted to because I ran into the wind for the first 4 miles. Luckily the cruise home was nice and easy.

Strong run with some tempo

Today I ran with some tempo; probably my last hard effort before the A1A Marathon on Sunday. I felt good with miles 6, 7 and 8 my strongest (low 7's). I am making progress and I don't have any false expectations for this marathon but as I build the year up I believe some faster running is in my future.
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Run - 1:00:20 - 8:22 miles - 7:20 Pace - 142 avg hr
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Run - 40:00 - 5.0 miles 8:00 Pace
World of Beer fun run 

Trash Heap - 1 week to go

Ran the Trash Heap trail today at an easy pace; including 730' of elevation gain. Just one week to go before the A1A marathon.
Run - 1:39 - 10.28 miles - 9:37 Pace - 111 avg hr
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Randy is almost too big and Mimi too small for this type of activity - I suppose a photograph is necessary evidence. Randy and I are most definitely two lucky dogs. — with Mimi Reeves.

A Chilly Day

Yesterday was a rest day (not really a scheduled one - but I improvised). I have been told to "listen to your body" but I do not speak that language. The truth is, I just didn't feel like running. Perhaps that was my body speaking to me... I do not know.  Instead of running I decided to cruise out to the beach and walk around. It was a seasonal winter day in SoFla and the beach was empty. It was nice.

Run - 1:39 - 12.1 miles - 8:10 Pace - 123 avg hr
Decent run; really windy again - I should stop complaining about the wind - at least it isn't 90/90 (90 degrees with 90 percent humidity); embrace the winter. Floridians like to say, "that is why we live here"

Barack Obama

Times certainly have changed since the years of GWB. Despite great odds our country is stronger, safer and smarter. Because of President Obama, her future is brighter. Thank you Mr. President. I have your back.

Oppressed - Malcolm X

Malcolm X - a voice of reason then, and more true than ever now. The media (FOX NEWS, etc) has been very effective in doing such.

#MalcolmX #media #newpapers #oppressed #racism #liberals #Foxnews #MSNBC 

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Run - 37:30 - 5.11 miles - 7:20 Pace - 133 avg hr
Runners Depot Run Group tonight; with Mimi and Fra. I was supposed to run 8 miles ate 40" per mile above marathon pace, but I didn't feel good today. I am glad that I went out to run club though. I ran pretty good, too.