41 Mile Month

Super excited that I ran 41 miles in January. This stacks up as my third highest monthly mileage, per my Daily Mile stats (and month #1, August, included 18 miles of backpacking, which coincidentally got me into this whole ITB mess in the first place).

This bring me to entertain thoughts of ... TRAINING. Hmmm. Firstly, training would be very good for me because it limits the amount of "long runs" I do. If there isn't a training plan staring me in the face telling me to go run 3 miles, I will run 6. It's just how I am. Secondly, training gets you to run distances that you previously deemed impossible (hello 13.1 miles) in a hopefully safe timeframe.

I have two upcoming back-to-back snow trips planned, both to a Sierra Club winter cabin which necessitates 5 miles of uphill hiking with a 40 pound pack and snowshoes on my feet. Awesome. Plus add to that multiple hikes straight up powdery slopes with my snowboard tied to my back (free ride down, wheeee!). I hope and pray that my little ITB holds up solidly through all this. If it does, I will start running shorter distances interspersed with my long runs, ie; training.

In other buddy-news, I may or may not have found a running buddy(ies). Two friends have been running for months on the same River trail road that I run on. The only conceivable reason why we have not yet crossed paths before is that they are AM runners. Damn. I'm considering changing my habits just to have someone to run with. Updates to follow.

And lastly, I did P90X legs&back this evening before our employee dinner. Oh the burn.