Self-castigation in the form of the treadmill

I'm still in training mode, and the advent of school means it's back to the treadmill for mid-week tempo runs. It's a paradox, I realize. Theoretically, I could train in the morning on the road, but if for some reason I don't perform and am stuck 3-3.5 miles away from home at 6 a.m., I'll never make it to school by 7.

After school I have plenty of time, but I'm always hungry. I wind up eating a vending machine candy bar item about 45 min. before I step on the treadmill. It's usually a Baby Ruth, if you must know. It takes the place of my after-school snack, but then I step off the treadmill and am famished. I barely make it through the weights. I come home, take out the dog, flop on the couch, and ignore the dog for a good while, contemplating the nature of my existence.

On the brand new treadmills where I work out (these models have pretty blue displays! and fans!), I did seven miles last week (three of them at 7:30 pace) and six this week (four at 8:00 pace).

It's so hard to stay motivated on the treadmill, especially when you can't feel the breeze. Those fans, though weak, really help. I often ponder the problem of motivation while on the 'mill. Tuesday I fantasized that my gym was going to hand out trophies for "best workout of the day," judged on the amount of sweat produced. The detailed imagery did wonders for me in that last mile. Alas, I'm doomed to be a hamster in a wheel instead of a rat in a maze.

I'm looking forward to another 11-miler on Saturday and the Franklin Classic 10k on Monday! I'm not feeling especially fast yet, but another few weeks of this, and I hope to feel nice and strong.

Many will be pleased to hear that I threw in another after-school treadmill workout this week, in part as punishment for my last blog post.