Adaptation is truly the key to success in many things, including in running. We do long runs so that our legs will adapt to more miles. We do intervals or other speedwork so that our lungs and blood vessels will learn to handle the strain. And as each season changes, our bodies adapt to the changing conditions of temperature, humidity and sunlight.
These past few weeks, I've appreciated adapting to the weather more than ever. As temperatures dropped and snow and ice fell, I adapted to running conditions outside ... by staying inside.
It's been a brutal winter so far in upstate New York, and I think it's been three weeks since my last run outdoors. Between the cold (this morning, it was -11 degrees Fahrenheit), and the snow (we've gotten about four feet cumulatively), and, of course, the illness (my own for two days, and my family for another six), it's like a conspiracy to keep me inside.
This is when the treadmill can be my friend, and I'm thankful that I have the chance to use it. Without it, my running would be almost non-existent, and training for my Spring Marathon would be devastated. That said, after three weeks, the scenery is getting old. Short runs are tolerable, and at least I have a TV that I can watch, but after a 14 mile long run, I've looked at my basement walls about all I can.
Don't get me wrong - I used to swear by the treadmill, and I did almost all of the training for my first marathon on a treadmill at night. Since then, though (that was 2004), I've learned the joy of running in nature, and also the exhilaration of morning runs; the treadmill at any hour has become more of a chore than an expression of my running love. The roads are what I run on; right now they're what I long for. The diversity of scenery, the fresh air, the challenge of real hills, and the familiar, but changing paths - this is what I hope for in my run tomorrow.
I better get it in quick though - I hear there's a storm coming in on Wednesday......
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