July 13-July 19 Mileage Cramming

July 13 rest
July 14 rest
July 15 16 miles around Gaston MS and neighborhood
July 16 16 miles around Gaston MS and neighborhood
July 17 rest
July 18 24 White Rock Lake and Santa Fe Trail
July 19 24 White Rock Lake and Santa Fe Trail
80 mpw
I'll start by saying that this week my allergies were getting me.  I was feeling fatigued and sleepy with a lack of energy can't really explain it very well.  At the beginning of the week I took an extra day off thinking that would help, then I realized I had to do a bit more on my run Wed. & Thurs.  Friday again the fatigue came back and I just didn't feel right.  I can't really point it out other than it being symptoms of allergies.  I started to realize that this fatigue wasn't going away so I just had to do my best considering the circumstances.  The weather app kept saying pollen very high and I doubt that will change any time soon, the heat mixed with the humidity also probably didn't help. But everyone has there own challenges and I think I made the best of the situation.
The Weekend Awakening
So the weekend came and I figured this week I will probably not get to the mileage goal, just hadn't run enough.  I had only run twice during the week and I figured I would just do a longer run and hope for the best.  Started the weekend run nice and early at 5:30 am and had plenty of time before the heat came.  The further I went the better I felt.  Once I had reached the 18-19th mile I figured hey if I can get to 24 miles today I'll have a shot of maybe making it to 80 for the week.  The least I could do was try right?  Pace didn't matter I just wanted to get the miles.  I made it to 24 miles on Saturday and then on Sunday I was like well if I can at least do 19 I can get to 75 miles which would be okay since last week I went over the 80.  So again I started early at 5 in the morning and just set out to do the best I could.  Did the route down Santa Fe trail then looped the lake and I realized I could get another 24 miles back to back.  It was tough, the heat was high, but it got me to realize that even with some set backs I could still get the work done.
The Importance of Surrounding Yourself with People with the Same Mission
I recently came across some of the content of Jim Rohn and one of the things that stood out was the saying that: "You are the average of the 5 people you spend time the most with." Our lives are heavily influenced by relationships as we are social creatures and this is the reason why isolation is associated with negative emotions. Relationships weather one realizes it consciously or not impacts thinking, decision making, and self perception of one self as well as others.
I realized the power of surrounding yourself with people when I made up all those miles over the weekend.  Other runners that have the same mission and motivation can be a great influence in getting the work done.  I want to emphasize that running is tough.  I've been running competitively since middle school, over 20 years now and I have seen runners come and go.  Highly talented runners who would run great times that are not longer running is a pretty common thing.  What is less common is a runner that can consistently compete for decades. So for me to be at it for this long I can definitely attribute to some great influences that have kept me going at a competitive level.

According to research by social psychologist Dr. David McClelland of Harvard, [the people you habitually associate with] determine as much as 95 percent of your success or failure in life

I want to say thank you to those great influences that continue to help me achieve the goals even with all the obstacles that present themselves. Things that are worth it don't come easy. I also want to be  intentional especial now in the age of pandemic to realize that with relationship building of people who I admire and will continue to keep me in the running game. Although one may think that running is a individual thing, I want to emphasize the importance of having a support network that keeps you motivated especially during the down times. It's easy when things are going your way, but what do you do when things don't?
Final Thoughts
As I write this on Sunday night I realize how nice it is to meet the mileage goal and I cannot thank others enough that were part of the journey.  On Friday I didn't think this week I would get to 80 miles but now writing about the week I'm pleasantly pleased.  Thank you for reading and all the best!