When Life Becomes Ultra-Training

Should have known last week, during my fussy, uncomfortable, grumpy long run with sled that things were heading south. I told a friend I met on the trail that I wanted to throw my sled in the creek. Passersby asked dumb questions about the sled and whether my baby was inside my zipped drybag. I wore different tights and they rubbed on my hips where my waist belt lie. I dressed too warm and got sweaty. I was too hot and too cold. I was too lazy to fix my insulated hose and so I kept zipping and readjusting and re-zipping and adjusting and unzipping. I looked at the time on my phone too much.

Once the sled pull was done, I had to pick up kids and make dinner. Enter sick husband leaving for business trip. In between salad prep, helping with homework, pasta boiling, sibling referee-ing and dinner on table, I located running shoes, travel toothpaste, ties and a book to read.

Husband leaves town, youngest daughter throws up in the dog blanket I jumped out of the car at the red light to grab just in time. I worked on lesson plans for 4 hours while sick kid drifts in and out of sleep and movies. I think about how good yoga would be for me.

Pick up older kid from school, make copies at office for school next day, pick up Jr. Nordic Gear, dinner, drop off at Jr. Nordic, youngest barfs in Russian Jack parking lot. Check math homework, serve snacks, put kids to bed and fall into bed by 9:30.

Cancel my class, call all my parents and apologize. No sick kid care available. Oldest gets sick two hours after I drop her at school and youngest proclaims, " I'm back to my crazy self!" I'd give anything if she'd barf.

None of this is an emergency or life-threatening or extraordinary. But for 48 hours, I didn't think about running or 100 milers or Talk Ultra or my frickin' sled. I put my head down and did what I needed to do. I didn't worry about the training I thought should be doing  or the trail conditions or what my running friends were running. I ran my own race. It just wasn't on the trails. I made note of it on the training calendar. Now that is good ultra-training.