Mia runs with us about once a week, her longest distance to date is about 8 miles. To say she runs with us is an overstatement. She quickly walks next to me, never breaking into a run or even a jog. It's pretty embarrassing to be going full out, breathing heavy with sweat pouring down my face and I look next to me and she's just walking along. Her running career started about a year and a half ago when Joe was injured. I didn't want to run alone so I volunteered her for the job. She doesn't mind running in the rain or cold, but with the heat, she doesn't go out if it's over 70ish. Mia, like most women, struggles with her weight and therefore continues to run. With a weekly run she keeps her weight to a svelte 35lbs, any higher and the vet starts to nag us about her diet. Little does he know it's hard for runners to control their appetites!
Up until recently we have been perfectly matched training partners, but we've hit a snafu. I'm getting too fast for her. She prefers a 10 min mile. This allows her to walk along with no effort, as we've gotten faster her endurance has started to suffer. At a 9:20 pace she can hang for 3-4 miles and then she poops out. Part of me wonders if it's an act because at the faster pace she doesn't have enough time to sniff out the route. Every runner strives to achieve more speed, but it's tough when you become faster than your running partner. Now if I started to get faster than Joe I would be psyched and rub his nose in it, fortunately I don't have this competitive spirit with Mia.
I'm not ready for Mia to retire from running, but I'm not sure how Bob will take it if I tell him I had to hold back so my dog could run with me. For now I keep her at the 5 mile distance and pace myself to ensure I don't outrun her before we hit the car, it would be quite the workout to have to run the last 2 miles carrying my 35lb running partner.
Days till NYC: 120
Miles trained today: 5
No comments:
Post a Comment