Once again, I was on the trail as the sun rose this morning, this time for a 5-mile “run” on my original run loop to gauge progress.
The temps were in the high 40s, and I debated on whether to wear long sleeves or not, but then I looked at my hulking body in the mirror and remembered how much sweat I put out. I stuck with the short sleeves.
It seems like yesterday (or six days ago) when I was so overheated and drenched with sweat that I needed to stop by a trailside artesian well to douse myself with water to cool down, and today it was 45˚ when I got feetz on trail as the sun was rising. Shit.
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: it doesn’t matter if you have to go to work or school or not; Monday’s vibes are always shit.
I was up early and on the trails by 7:00 Saturday morning for a short 3-mile lumber that would put me over my 25-mile goal for the week and have me home in time for coffee, a giant homemade breakfast burrito, and to see most of the first Premier League match this morning; joyously watching Arsenal lose out on all three points and draw against Brighton.
I was happy to hit my goal and to see Arsenal drop two points, but I was even happier with a shot I got today.
After Thursday’s Day of Slack, I was looking forward to returning to the woods for some miles on Friday morning.
My plan was a longer lumber (no running) in an attempt to make up for some miles missed on Thursday and also set up Saturday’s final lumber/run of the week as a short one so I can get it done and back home for breakfast (coffee and a Big as Your Head homemade breakfast burrito) and Premier League footy, as well as avoid the weekend dog shitters, river tubers, and Labor Day Weekend Laborers.
I’m pretty sure I did it.
The rest did wonders for my legs, and some of the little aches and pains I felt Thursday were now gone, and despite the continued high humidity, I got 7.28 miles on my feetz and took a few photos along the way.
I was happy to get back to some longer hikes, and today’s marked my longest lumber since a 7-miler back in March. That was a real indication of how this summer’s injuries set me back. Having said that, I was doing 6-mile hikes pretty consistently and getting 30 miles a week for a good couple of months. I was also happy because when I made it back to Escape II at the trailhead, I felt like I could have kept on going, only I hadn’t eaten breakfast, and my gut was telling me it was egg and toast time.
***
Obviously, you didn’t love grammar; it’s Deerz.
Actually, I should have said those injuries set me forward because those same injuries also motivated me to start running more consistently, and as a result, I feel better than I have in years, both physically and mentally. Mostly physically.
Only 2.27 miles are between me and this week’s 25-mile goal.
NOTE: For today’s hike I took the Nikon z50 and the Nikon Z mount 28mm f2.8 (42-ish MM on the z50). I want to like this lens, but I can’t say I do. At least on the z50.
Later.
After 15 miles and three days of running and lumbering in heat and humidity, I was stoked when I took the dogs out this morning and felt cooler temps. It felt great to breathe dry(er) air again. Well, at least until Jake dropped a dook. Then things got humid and stank real fast.
After I was done spewing the decaying shit in my brain to the O.G. Mindbender last week, we were talking casually, and I mentioned my somewhat steady improved attempts at running and how much of a mental rub and a tug it’s been for me. She was complimentary, but as with many therapists, I could tell she wasn’t extremely impressed.
I rebounded from yesterday’s hot and humid “run” nicely and was eager to get into the woods this morning for some photo creeping and lumbering.
But first, I had to wait for Ma Nature to stop the thunderstorms as well as for it to get light out.
Pretend these tacos are deer.
A weekend photo creep never materialized due to not caring, outdoor chores that needed choring, and too much footy to watch. Such is life.
After a week or two of incredible late summer weather with temps in the 70s and cold nights, summer’s back in a big way, and the heat and humidity are crazy, especially for chubby Michiganderburghers who dig doing shit outdoors such as myself.
Heat or no heat, a lumber/run was on tap for Monday morning on my standard 5-mile loop, and I was fully prepared to suffer; I mean, the worst that could happen is that I kill over in a heap of gelatinous beer-scented flesh, and I think most people, including myself, would probably welcome that.
3.61 miles were all that stood between me and hitting my 25-mile weekly goal in four days, and I was intent on not doing much more than was required today.
I felt well enough during the morning’s lumber/run and THOUGHT I was pushing the pace a bit, given that I was only doing a short loop, but it turns out I was not.
