The "easy days" and why I need them

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Today, I took what I call an "easy day."

I ran a slow two miles today instead of my usual 3-5. Why? I'm tired and my kitchen really needed a good scrubbing today.

Sure, knocking off a mile off my usual run won't give me that much extra time to clean, but mentally, it was what I needed to keep myself from putting off the pile of dishes another day.

I've never been one to run every single day. Throughout my running career, I have usually taken at least one day off during the week to sleep in, run errands or just flat out be lazy.

I don't plan to take any of those days for my 100 miles in 30 days challenge, but that doesn't mean I won't allow myself a few low-mileage days here and there.

I've known many runners who run daily without even thinking about it, but that's never been me. Even in my peak fitness, I just couldn't do it. For me, the off day is just enough mental and physical rest to keep me motivated for the rest of the week. Almost like I'm working hard for that day to just chill.

Plus, recovery is super important. Don't ever, ever neglect proper recovery time, especially if you've just ran a distance race like a half marathon, full marathon or more.

food

I also couldn't resist a bit of temptation tonight. You see, tonight was the gubernatorial primary election in Alabama. Election night in the newsroom ALWAYS spells "pizza." So, I had my usual oatmeal this morning then had some veggie pizza tonight. I was very self-controlled and even stopped eating at 7 p.m. (2 hours shy of my cutoff time for my IF).

I'm planning some yummy roasted sweet potatoes, roasted veggies and rice for dinner tomorrow. I'm also going to experiment with some strawberry oats in the morning. I have absolutely no clue how that's going to turn out. 

 But, you'll see in tomorrow's blog.

I'll up my mileage to 4 miles for Wednesday and Thursday so I can make up the miles I didn't run today.

There will be another weigh-in report tomorrow too!

18 pounds to go!

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