Oh heeeeeyyyy.
We're back.
We took a hiatus.
And by "hiatus," I mean we have been suffering the cold dark doldrums that is your existence during winter in North Dakota.
We ran through it but I think I speak for both of us when I say there really hasn't been much HEART in it.
But now it's sort-of-almost "spring" here. I mean, most of "spring" here is still subfreezing temps with the added bonus of 20+ mph winds. But it starts getting kind of sunnier. Like "oh hey, it's nice out" and then you step out and you get slapped in the eyeballs by fierce freezing winds. And then you're like "I HATE the cold and I wish I lived someplace warm and that I could wear skirts and sandals already, F@#K!!!"
So yeah.
Winter Running in North Dakota:
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| 8 December. Hats and face protectors have a layer of ice on them. Becky's mascara froze to her face! |
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| 8 Dec- And my braids were completely frozen! I didn't even realize this until we stopped to take the last photo, and I realized my hair was frozen to my jacket. Crazy, huh? |
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January 1-We have to run in circles around our Community Center because it has a 1 mile track that they keep swept clear of snow. It's the only safe running route because of the ice and snow.
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12 January. Sunset. At 4:15 in the afternoon. It's pretty. But I miss the sunshine.
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29 January. Be jealous.
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2 February. ChillyCheeks5K. Raised money for both the Wounded Warrior Project AND the American Cancer Society.
Totally worth the 33 degree temperatures (kind of nice out for February) and 24 mph sustained winds!
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That ONE day in March that finally really warms up and gives you hope....
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... before it is taken away again. 17 March. March, y'all. Seriously.
(I didn't go running in this. Too blustery. It was a fine, wet snow ALL DAY with something like 20 mph winds. Our friend Lisa, who is an ANIMAL, went out and did 16 miles in this!! )
So that's where we are and where we've been these days. We are often asked if we keep up our training in the winter, and you see, our answer is yes. Our threshold for outdoor training is generally 20 degrees, but that can change if there's too much ice or wind. We wear layers. Lots of thin layers, actually, with our heads and hands covered. Arm warmers under tech jackets and compression cold weather pants under sweats. We keep it around 8-12 miles in the "off season" -- but here in North Dakota, it's not officially not-winter until Memorial Day Weekend.
And since our first race of the year-- Fargo Marathon-- is May 18th, you have to get started in the cold weather. Fargo Marathon is typically a cool-weather race (no matter how much you are hoping and praying for it to be a tank-top and shorts day, you're always at the starting line in jackets and headwarmers).
I want to end this on a positive note.
I know it looks like I'm complaining and miserably cold. I mean, well, I am. But the thing is-- facing the misery and running through it.... these are the things that make you tough and define you. As a runner, you have to go run. Not wait for tomorrow. Not wait til it warms up. Not wait til you feel like it. Not wait for your running partner to goad you into it. (Okay, nix the last one because I totally make Becky do this for me all the time.) You know the saying (because you've seen it on Pinterest a million times)... if we wait for perfect conditions, we'll never get anything done.
Which is true for everything, not just running. As with anything, finding the get-up-and-go to take the first step out the door, to get your head into the first mile- is the hardest part.
But we persevere. We keep grinding away. We find the inner strength to do what we have to. Because we're all bad-ass in one way or another. We're all strong. We're all fighters and runners and leaders. We're all amazing in our own face-down-our-fears way.
Even when the world around us is cold and dark.
Especially when the world around us is cold and dark.
Be the light. Be the change. Get out there!
Happy Running!
~Jen
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