Friday, June 29, 2007

catharsis denied... [edited for spelling]

It's been a week.

Some high notes, many low notes, and the last three days have been... interesting. I wonder if they have a betting pool going on at work to see if I'll explode or implode, and what it'll look like. But enough of that-

I run for stress management, among other things. It does wonders to my ability to deal, focus on essentials, and put things in perspective. It flushes out the under used adrenaline, clears my mind, usually puts a smile on my face. I don't remember a time when it didn't work for me, to brighten my mood a little, if not by leaps and bounds.

That is, until today.

The plan was to finish work, go to a metro park, bike ride for 15-20 miles and finish with an eight mile run at whatever pace felt good. Figure the low nine's maybe high eights if I was feeling spunky.

I did the biking, and it was fine... a little under 16 miles in a little under an hour- I averaged 16.1 mph. Not bad for a mountain bike, I guess. Transitioned to running stuff, and set off without looking at pace.

It wasn't a bad run, mind you. I did eight miles in an hour and five minutes, something that would have sent me into spasms of joy not that long ago, and is still pretty neat when all is said and done. Heck, half my miles were below an eight minute pace- something that I've never touched before.

But it's this lingering feeling of dissatisfaction, I guess. I was grinding my teeth as I drove home, for no apparent reason.

Ah well. I guess I'm a victim of the "when all you have is a lead pipe, every problem looks like a kneecap" syndrome. Running and exercise are great tools, but they can't solve all of life's angst.

[edit: maybe a good night's sleep helps- I feel a lot better now than I did a few days ago...]

6 comments:

Tina said...

I've noticed that exercise is great for relieving stress caused by everyday annoyances, but is merely a brief respite from those pesky, lingering life issues. Sure, it takes my mind off those issues for a bit, and maybe burns off some of the stress caused by them, but doesn't actually solve the problems. Which are always rudely awaiting me when I get back. Bastards.;-)

Is it possible that it's, at least partially, an overtraining thing?

Fritz said...

I kind of doubt it- over training (for me) typically manifests in a couple of ways, culminating in illness or injury.

My mood over the past few days has six or seven quite concrete, identifiable stresses, some which I can address, others which I can't.

Also, I feel a lot better today after having a night's sleep. That probably had something to do with it, too...

Anonymous said...

did you mean catharsis?

Fritz said...

Oops. thanks!

Unknown said...

I had my running gear on this morning and totally bailed. I just wasn't feeling all that great -- stomach issues -- and since I'm not running with the running store peeps tomorrow, I can run in the a.m. as well as on Thursday and be OK for my long run Saturday, which is only 5 or 6 miles this week.

I feel like such a loser, though, mostly because I'm REALLY stressed and NEEDED that run. ARGH.

Sometimes your body tells you what it wants.

Anonymous said...

me too...very often, it's hard to get started. the 2nd cup of coffee is calling, the couch feels so good...but after that first stiff mile, my mind is limbering up along with my body. I've brainstormed my way out of a few dilemmas on the roads. And sometimes it is just an escape.-D