Hi Everyone!

Now is when many of us are trying to get back to the regular routine, and as I type, it’s snowing heavily yet again. Just be patient, be careful, be creative, and do what you can do. There are indoor tracks, treadmills, cross country ski trails, gyms and swimming pools around – letting go of your usual routine might be the mental and physical release you need right now.

I’ve been trying to think about what makes training “fun” as I look ahead to a month or more of not the easiest running and as I try to think about what I want out of 2026. Good company definitely helps, and I’m grateful to this crew for that. Sharing the sloshy footsteps and windy faceburn actually does make some of these outings way more enjoyable than I’d think. But that’s more about getting through individual sessions. When I think about having fun in my training, it’s usually when I have an overarching purpose. Something pulling me along so the effort has intent. And that’s where goals and signing up for races come in – surprisingly. I wanted to write about having fun with our running, and I realized that looking back, some of the most fun I’ve had this past year has been around races and training for races. CIM, Boston, track races, 5K’s, The Beaver Trail race. It’s funny because sometimes I think – I just want running to be low-key and “fun” and that that requires not registering for any races. But I think I’ve realized that despite being hard and uncomfortable and sometimes even a little stressful, the race experiences are what I remember and have encoded in my memory bank as “fun”.

So, when looking ahead at how to try to build more fun into my 2026 year, I think that actually might require some race goals. Not race goals as in times I’m trying to hit, but race goals as in experiences I’m trying to have. I know many in this group have some fun races coming up – London, Chilly, 5K’s, Berlin to name a few. I also know that many of the races I ran last year wouldn’t have happened if someone hadn’t suggested it or invited me along. So as you plan your 2026 year in races, put the word out and ask others to join! Racing never gets easier, but it just might be becoming a bit more fun.

 

On to tomorrow’s workout – LOCATION UPDATE! We have the Monarch indoor track so we will meet there at 6:00 am and start intervals at 6:15 (I figure it might take a bit more time to get sorted and go to the washroom etc.) Show up warmed up as usual though. $15 each and we’ll collect payment after.

 

1 mile @ tempo – can progress to threshold

3 min rest

5 x 300 w 1 min rest

3 min rest

1 mile @ tempo

3 min rest

5 x 300 w 75 sec rest

Option of 1 mile @ MP to finish if training for a spring marathon

 

That is all – see you inside in the am!

 

xo

 

Seanna