What an incredible week I have in store for you! Can’t express my gratitude to everyone who helped me achieve things that I achieved during this week.
Day 1 – Sunday, May 24, 2020 – Quarantine Day 69
The first day of the week was welcomed with some Sunday morning laziness. I think it was yesterday’s late night reading and working that made me get up quite late, since, it was a Memorial Day Long Weekend.
Today was also the rest day and for a good reason. Me and my friend, Anupam, decided to run a Marathon to commemorate the Memorial Day 2020. It was the first time for the both of us to run a Marathon and seemed like a mammoth but highly possible task. So, with all the rest that I had for the last week and a good mental state, I thought, tomorrow is an ideal day for us to accomplish this dream.
However, to get rid of the boredom and to end the day on a little happy note, we decided to go out for a quick walk before calling it a day.
It was a nice day and it felt refreshing to go out for a walk. The kids biked with us *slowly* and we enjoyed a good sunny Michigan summer weather.
We ended up completing 2 miles during this short walk and I remember myself being tired and heading to bed earlier as we had a long and historic day before us.
Day 2 – Monday May 25, 2020 – Quarantine Day 70
The day I was waiting for finally arrived and I must say, I barely managed to crush it.
You can read about details here. If you do not want to go through this long description, here are the highlights
– Anupam completed his first marathon too, along with me.
– Monika and kids helped us with supplies for our Marathon journey.
– We could have started earlier (around 4.30 AM), would have given us advantage.
– We should have carried more water after taking a break at 15 miles mark.
– Recovery included an ice bath, a quick shower, and a 4-mile bike.
Here is the picture of the Marathon runners. 😃
Day 3 – Tuesday May 26, 2020 – Quarantine Day 71
Yesterday, I ran the first Marathon of my life and I couldn’t be happier, so, naturally, today was the REST DAY. I enjoyed this day and sort-of took the feeling in.
Day 4 – Wednesday May 27, 2020– Quarantine Day 72
I surprised myself by recovering earlier than I thought.
Initially, I thought it would be a week before I start running again, but, the recovery after the Marathon run helped tremendously and I saw myself running a short distance today morning.
I got up earlier than usual and thought of going out for a quick run before making it just in time for the breakfast. When I started the run, I thought I would see and try to complete a couple miles, but a few minutes into the run, I saw myself exceeding expectations and thought I could go for me and so, I did.
I was wearing my other shoes – the old ones, so I think that area could have been improved to further enhance my running experience. But, I am not complaining, I am glad that I could run just a day after running a Marathon and couldn’t be happier.
After the work, it was time to go out for a bike ride with kids. They were complaining that I don’t spend much time with them due to too much work, so, I made sure I accompany them for our usual bike ride. It was a good session and was soothing for my knees. Loved every single part of it.
Day 5 – Thursday May 28, 2020– Quarantine Day 73
And this brings us to Thursday. I surprised myself again today.
I got up at around 4.30 AM and did some early morning work. As soon as the clock hit 6, I made sure I go out for a quick run before the breakfast time and I was glad I did that. I was wearing my different Nike shoes that I used for more than a couple years for CrossFit and the feeling was ecstatic. Those shoes felt so good that I crushed the run. For a new runner like myself, a pace of less than 10 minutes a mile, is gold, so I was thankful that I had these shoes to my rescue until I buy a new pair.
The good thing about this run was the my third mile was the quickest and my first mile was the slowest. Awesome times for me!
After the run, I was swamped with work and loved that it kept me busy and I didn’t even realize when it was time to shut down my work laptop.
After finishing the work, it was time for our daily bike ride with kids. We took our usual 19 mile route and loved every bit of it. Even after running a Marathon and a few short runs and bike rides, this distance didn’t feel that much.
I was glad to see the time taken for 18 miles bike ride was coming down a little bit, but not much of a concern for me at this point in time.
Day 6 – Friday May 29, 2020– Quarantine Day 74
Ahh! Friday feeling! It was a good feeling as Friday arrived early for the week and I had my work cut out for myself for the week and felt good to finish off all the work assigned to me.
Apart from the wonderful food and an awesome company, the thing to remember was our long walk after dinner. This walk was so long that it became dark on our way back home. It was a weird feeling to roam in so much dark, and was certainly tired at the end of it. It was, I think, 10 PM by the time I reached home and went to bed as I was tired. Plus, I don’t like staying late at night.
Day 7 – Saturday May 30, 2020– Quarantine Day 75
And this brings us to the end of the week. We chose to repeat our hike at the Pinckney State Recreational Area for Saturday.
This time, we wanted to take things lightly and go for lesser distance than the last time. We loved this State Park as it had a nice trail going from Pinckney to Waterloo, which is a 35 mile long trail. We chose the trail which was around 5-6 miles long and could finish it with enough breaks in between.
For the last couple of hikes, we have started running a little bit while walking, so that definitely helps us cut down some time for the hikes that we do and hopefully, it gives us good exercise to keep our bodies in shape.
Nothing too extraordinary regarding this hike, except the fact that we enjoyed a slice of pizza at the end of it. I enjoyed it very much.
And this brings us to the end of Week #21. This was a great week for so many reasons, but, the highlight being MY FIRST MARATHON.
Here’s my Running journal. So many things to say, but too less a space available. Good thing is I completed 300 miles of running for the year 2020. My goal is 1,000 miles, so let’s see how far I get.
stochasticity 