I recently saw a Facebook post noting that there are only 15 weeks left until the Marine Corps Marathon.

And what was I doing? Waiting at Sheetz for an iced mocha with a touch of mint and a flatbread turkey and bacon sandwich.

I had almost fallen asleep on my commute to work and I needed caffeine, sugar and protein. 

This past week, I ran only on Monday. Things have shifted at home and I was still feeling the effects of Ragnar. I still have the dirt on my toes and in my shoes. 

I also have the photos. I shared the best photo in my last post. What you don’t see are all the subsequent wardrobe malfunctions where my shirt and leggings don’t quite meet as I unbuckled my team’s bib belt.

The shift at home was changing from a mile commute to an hour-plus drive. I left home earlier, got to bed later and felt like lead.

I’d get home at 3 a.m., or a little earlier depending on the shift, and get up when the sun came up, about three hours later. If I was luckily, I’d get a few more hours of sleep in.

Five hours of sleep when you don’t commute is a lot different then when you do. I used to just drive home, play on my phone for 30 minutes to settle my brain and then go to sleep. Easy, peasy.

With the commute, however, I had to eat a package of Cliff Blox and down a small mocha to stay awake. Then I had to make sure I didn’t  run out of gas on the way home. When I did get home, I was still high on caffeine, so I had to wait for the drug to run its course. Just typing everything I had to do is exhausting.

My weapons against fatigue while commuting.

Why give up the easy commute to go to another part of Appalachia, you ask? Ask the Mountain Kids.

Listen to them play in our yard without having to yell over the din of coal- and stone-carrying trucks. Let them tell you about how our plants are actually growing in our garden instead of wilting due to an overabundance of shade and car exhaust.

The Mountain Kids in their yard.

True, we could have just moved to another part of town. But sometimes you have to follow your heart.

In following my heart, I took some time off to figure out this commute thing so I can come up with a marathon training plan that suits my needs.

And I was lucky I started a 20-week plan. A week off didn’t mess with the process.

In doing Ragnar, I found that I am stronger than I was a year ago, but I still have a ways to go.

So on my days off or days when my husband is off, I plan on doing two-a-days. I’m not necessarily going to spread out my run. But I will work on incorporating more strength training and yoga into my routine. My arms and core just aren’t where they should be to handle longer distances. I also need the yoga to stretch everything out because my legs don’t like the commute and sitting at a desk for eight hours.

I am also going to look further into MacGyvering my diet and exercise routine. For those that don’t know MacGyver was a character on a TV show in the 1980s, who could take what was around him to make something else. So for example, if I take a collapsible water bottle and put it in a SPIbelt, I have a hydration belt with space for my iPhone or keys. Or if I put the beans growing in my kitchen with the noodles of my mac n cheese (no sauce), I’ll get a healthier meal that I would have originally.

The move has/will require a lot of sacrifice. I can’t make my favorite baked goods. And I miss my Team RWB running group something feirce.

But good things are in the horizon. I hope to fill you in on what I learn. Hopefully for those of you who, like me, sometimes has to scrounge up change buried in you sofa for race entry fees, you’ll find the entries useful.