More reading and writing.

Q: What are you gonna do different this upcoming marathon build?

A: More reading and writing.

I hadn’t realized the power of my training log, until I skipped writing during some crucial weeks of my last marathon build. In hindsight, it was the space the training log created for me to decompress and process my thoughts and feelings, that allows me to navigate the mental, physical, and emotional fatigue during the final weeks of a marathon build. After skipping a series of weeks’ entries, I eventually cracked under the weight of emotions held in for too long a few weeks out from the Valencia Marathon, and dropped during a big “end of build” workout. Emotions were heavy as tears flooded my eyes as I cried uncontrollably for 15 minutes straight.

It was a long-awaited release.

Sometimes my mind is silent on runs and other times it’s trying to solve all the world’s problems, processing stuck emotions, or drafting imagined screenplays and blog posts to capture the essence of new epiphanies. I’ve realized now that writing in my log is more than just noting data and metrics to see trends in my training and share with my coach, but capturing what I felt, thought of, and learned from my runs. Writing is my post-run mental cool down and as I know now, a much needed daily practice.

After seeing it on a friend’s Instagram story, I purchased the Run My Life Journal + Planner to hold myself accountable to setting time aside to connect with myself post-run and live each day intentionally. So here’s to more miles, reading and writing!

How do you mentally decompress after runs? What tools help you release?