Image by crossn81 via Flickr

One of the main reasons I run is to race, I really enjoy racing and the feeling that comes with it, even when I place 700 and something!  When I have a goal race or races it gives me something to look forward to and to be motivated by.  So after completing my goal race, no matter the distance, the next week or so is always a little like a slump.

Things are no different for the marathon.  It has been a week and a half since I conquered the beast and for the first few days I was so stiff and sore that running never really crossed my mind. But as the pain and fatigue wore off I started to get a little bit of an itch to go running.  I scratched the itch by biking to work and that helped a little…  My schedule wasn’t really conducive to running without getting up really early (and I was tired) so I didn’t worry too much about running.

One week after the marathon I went for a 5k run, I made it a little more special by running on trails and enjoying the fall beauty of the Mississippi River.  This was great and after the first little bit I felt pretty good.  A few days later on Wednesday I went for another short run and it felt pretty good too. But I am severely unmotivated.  This is maybe the best time of year to run, the temps are cool, scenery is amazing and I lack motivation.  That is a little frustrating.

I know that running a marathon takes a lot out of you and things have been extremely busy since the marathon.  I’m sure that hasn’t helped.  Neither has the fact that the sun doesn’t come up as early anymore. I’ve been eating a ton of food at each meal and sometimes walk away hungry and my sleep schedule hasn’t been the best either.  All of this to say that while I was so extremely focused before the marathon to make sure I was taking excellent care of my body, that isn’t the case now.  In fact I should be sleeping instead of writing this post and last night I played around on Delicious for hours instead of getting some needed sleep.

I think if was taking care of myself better I might not be feeling as unmotivated and fatigued.  What do you think?? Have you experienced similar thoughts and feelings?

Ok enough ramblings from me… I’m going to put my thoughts into action and get some sleep..