The evils of "Just"

Just think: Hal Higdon had you putting in mile after mile for the last so many weeks and now you can cut back the distance and frequency... this should be heaven!

But it's not. What gives?

We did a quick 3.28 mile run last night. It should have been a breeze considering my last few weeks included several 8, 9, and 10 milers. But I felt heavy! I felt like that awkward 5th grader attempting the mile run in gym class. Each step goes *THWAMP* hard on the pavement and it looks like they're about to throw up, and it's only the first lap...

Then came a cramp under my ribs that would NOT fade away. Ugh. So this is how it's gonna be, huh?!? (Dear body: get it out of your system now because come Sunday, you BETTER behave!)

Tapering should feel like welcomed relief. When you finish and think "why did I even change out of my jeans? That was hardly a workout!"

Then you wonder things like, "Can I justify a burger if I only ran 3 miles?".

And to think that just months ago, you would say things like "I ran 6 miles! High five!" but now you use that evil word "just". 

"My run last night? Yeah, it was just 6 miles" as if you need to apologize for slacking.

Quit slacking. Call it what it is: Tapering.

Because come Sunday around noon, you'll be thinking, "I JUST RAN 26.2 MILES!" and there's no apologizing needed. You're not a slacker. You're a marathon runner.