Sunday I checked off another 14+ mile run. I forgot to charge my garmin again so it died at mile 8. My pace was slow. I was exhausted from the start. I was running on a few hours of sleep, and because of a sick child and a jam-packed weekend, I forgot to pay attention to my nutrition. I know better.
Last month I lost 4 lbs. While that sounds great, I don’t really need to lose any weight. A 4 lb weight loss reconfirms that I’m not eating enough to support my weekly mileage.
In six days I am running my eighth half-marathon, the Crawlin Crab half marathon in Hampton, Virginia.
In 25 days I am running the Wicked 10k for the third year in a row.
In 46 days I am running my second marathon, the Richmond Marathon.
I’m running 35+ miles a week to build the foundation for these races. My weekend long runs are increasing from 10 miles to 13, 14, 16, 18, and 20 miles. I’ve found a happy mental state even on these hard runs. I survived 14+ without any energy from the start. While this is great mental training, I need to now focus on physically supporting my body. It’s time to pay attention to what I’m eating. And I mean really pay attention to what I’m eating not just acknowledging that I need to pay attention. Today, for the first time in my life, I am starting a food journal. I’m looking at the nutritional value of every bite I take, and I may even count calories. I’m tracking my water consumption too. This is a boring tedious task for me, but I need to break the cycle I’ve created. Not planning and eating when I’m hungry isn’t working for me. I need more energy, and I plan on getting it from food and water (and begging my children to sleep).
I don’t have a goal for the week, but maybe after I pay closer attention to food intake, I will have better understand of what works for me.
Wasn’t it me who just said, “I need to support my seed and my body with the right nutrient dense soil.” Clearly I know better!
Weekend run: 14.75 miles according to map my run. Garmin died at mile 7.82
9:06, 9:13, 9:36, 9:40, 9:38, 9:29, 9:45, 9:45
(all trail miles minus first 1.6).
Kristy Maute 
Can I just say that I LOVE how you addressed the weight loss. I feel like it is SO important for us as runners to hear people talk so openly about it.
Thank you so much! I actually deleted that paragraph several times because I know weight loss is normally celebrated. For me and my body it is a huge red flag. I’m planning on posting more about what I discover this week as I further explore food.
I agree about talking about weight in a very open matter. It is something that I openly discuss on my blog as well. I’m actually running the Wicked 10k myself so I hope to see/meet you there!