QUESTION: If you do your "long" run in the morning and get to work and find out the elevators aren't working, and you have an office that covers 6 floors, can you add the number of stairs you climb over and over and over in the first hour to your workout?

This has been an ongoing problem for 2 weeks, since rennovation work in the building started up again. Last week it was a walk up 12 flights from the basement level. It wasn't too bad, but I did break out in a major sweat. I really couldn't complain because one of the guys on crutches actually walked up the whole thing too. (He's a runner too, and I think we were the only ones who ended up doing the whole 12 floors.) Usually I take the stairs between floors most of the day anyway, depending on how many trips I've already made and how many floors we're talking about. Today thankfully it was the whole 12 floors, but I had already been able to get to my floor before they "crashed" again (figuratively of course). But after the 5th time in about 30 min., I was starting to feel the burn.

I had decided to get the long run out of the way this morning, knowing full well it would be a major struggle to get on that treadmill for over an hour when I got home. And since we're leaving for Chicago at 6:30 am on Saturday, I wasn't about to start out the weekend with the grandkids (all in one hotel room) at 4 am. It was 5 when I got up today as it was and 5:40 when I hit the 'mill.

My mindset has been good these last two weeks. As I mentioned before, once I made up my mind to make Johan's Trifest Olympic triathlon my first main focus race for the year, the pressure was off, and I was able to finally stop feeling like I was forcing myself to do something I really didn't want to do just yet. If I want to do the 25k in May, I will up the training, but only after I see that my progress continue and I become willing to do it. Right now I am adding 5 min. a week to the long run. Doesn't make much of a difference distance-wise, but it does help reinforce in my mind and my body the repetition of running more than an hour at a time. Which I can do. But falling back to the treadmill again--because it really is easier, safer, more convenient, etc.--I am only going to slowly add time and let the distance take care of itself. They say the body doesn't know the difference between 5 miles and 20 miles (right!), but it does adapt to the difference between 20 min. and 2 hours. My body however needs to be convinced, so repetitive one hour plus runs is on the agenda until I reach 1 hour 30 min. Then I will decide how I feel at that length of time and adjust things accordingly. That means at least 2 more weeks at the LSD pace (long slow distance).

I actually feel good. I didn't cave in. I kept the pace aerobic, and only had to use the bathroom once. (another convenience of being in your own home for these types of things) Now if the elevators would just start working, my legs might make it through the day!