Getting there, little bit by little bit!

   I had a couple of "off" days earlier on this week, unplanned off days that occurred simply because we were either too tired to hit the gym or the weather was just too damned cold to get out and run (or even make the 5k trip to the gym, for that matter!)
   For the past two days, however, we are back into the swim of things, having been to the gym last night and me having run after work today.
   I was able to run 5k without stopping which, for me, is huge. There was a time back in early 2013 when I was doing this on a regular basis and throwing in the occasional longer run. After my bout with PF last spring, though, I kind of lost this ability.


Well...at least SORT of...

   Just before our off days, I managed to run a very slow 5k without stopping. I probably could have run it faster if I'd had one or two walk breaks but something inside of me desperately wanted to be able to say I ran the whole way. And I did! This felt so good! As I'm reading about other runners and the huge mileage they're able to log on a regular basis, it makes my little 5k seem pretty inconsequential but to me, like I said, it was huge.
   Today I was able to repeat the feat and managed to shave two and a half minutes off at the same time. I was running even more smoothly than the previous outing and at no time did I feel as though walking might be necessary.
   All of this seems a little wondrous to me. The times are achingly slow--in the 40plus minutes range--but I am also running against the elements. Today the temp was about 2F and I was running on packed snow. Not a bad running surface, actually, but you do find yourself running tentatively for the most part. The weather in these parts is about to take a huge turn for the better and soon we may find ourselves running in the forty degree range Fahrenheit. Snow may disappear from the sidewalks and roadways. Running may become more like...well...running--and less like simply surviving!
   So, as I mentioned, the running tonight felt good and I couldn't help but wonder if the last two weeks of cross-training might have had anything to do with that. If you had asked me beforehand what my expectations were of cross-training for two weeks, I would have said that I thought they were pretty minimal. Now I'm not so sure. I would really like to think that the gym work is paying off, if only in a small way so far!