Long Run Exhaustion

I wish I was one of those people who could do their really long runs in the morning and not be affected by it at all for the rest of the day. I've never talked to one of these people, but I assume they are out there. Those real runners who put it all on the line for hours and hours and then leave it all out there. Dang those real runners. 

I just can't do it. I am utterly exhausted after my long runs. I always have such bold plans of the work,errands, and leisure I am going to accomplish after my runs. But, by the time I have finished running, cooling down, stretching, drinking, foam rolling, and eating all I want to do is shower and crawl into bed. Which, is usually exactly what I end up doing. I try to rebound in the evenings, but I have to be honest about the poor job of it I do. I am useless at being any kind of fun. I'm just too exhausted to really rally. On a side note, you can only imagine how much my husband must love me while training (whomp whomp whomp - that's my Debbie Downer sound.  Sorry). 

All this is leading up to me saying I was too tired today to even think of anything to write. All 16 miles I thought if what I would blog about and nothing came. The run was "fine" and uneventful and honesty, lesson-less. 

So here is a little miscellaneous info:

1.  On mornings when I REALLY can't seem to get myself out the door, I read motivational quotes about running to get me going. This is the one that got me out the door today:

2.  My route takes me past Popeye's Chicken. I never crave and rarely, if ever, eat fried chicken, but I can't lie. That is about the best smell EVER while running!! One day I'm stopping for a mid-run snack. 

3. Speaking of food, I did have this for dinner. Zero guilt. It was super yummy. And yeah, it was cooked in a bowling alley "kitchen."

3.  I think I'm getting slower. My pace wasn't great. It wasn't terrible, but it was noticeably slower than previous runs that were the same or further distance. I'm not sure why, but keeping my typical pace has become more difficult. My guess is that it's just due to the relaxed holiday schedule and holiday over indulgence. But, I'm vowing now to increase my strength and speed training. Consider it my early new year's running resolution. Now, what is it they say about resolutions?  They are made to be broken. Or is that just rules?

4.  I'm currently listening to the audiobook of Elizabeth Gilbert's The Signature of All Things. It's very long. 25 hours or something. I may actually still be listening to it after the marathon. But, the narrator has this very specific and unique way of speaking and I find myself thinking in that voice for hours after my long run. Weird. 

Off to bed now. Goodnight.