David Taylor Gonzales

8/14

Today was a much needed off day. Lane and I bought a whiteboard which we’re using as a training/family/meal calendar. We decided we need to share an off day so we can spend some time together. Thursdays are already scheduled for House Church every week so it was somewhat a no brainer. When we got back, I was feeling restless so I decided to go out to the garage and spend some time working out (I didn’t even log it, just 20 minutes with some pull-ups, hammer curls, core work, etc). I’m starting to notice something disturbing: I’m not doing a good job of allowing myself to truly rest. This marathon training block is creating a sort of underlying anxiety around training where I feel like I’m “falling behind” if I miss a workout or don’t execute well. I need to operate with more grace for myself and a better mindset. It boils down to trusting that I’m doing the right things, even if what my body requires is an off day.

8/15

I ran 3.5 miles with Travis at a 8:33 pace. It was good to spend some quality time with him and get the heart rate up in preparation for the long run tomorrow. We got to discuss parenting and how he’s excited for baby number four to come next week. I like days like this where we pick up the pace but can still have a conversation. Some of the truly easy runs get mundane. This was a good balance of challenge, especially on the hills, mixed with some good “flowy” segments as well. It looks like I might be running solo tomorrow for the half-marathon. Elliott texted me saying he’s worried he might have a micro-fracture in his foot. Super bummed for him. I’m hopeful he can still train and run with me on November 2nd. We both have the goal of breaking 4 hours so it’d be great to start and finish together.

8/16

Half-marathon day! I ran solo, but the good news was Elliot’s foot was okay. He’s gonna cross train this week so I ran this one by myself. Him and I will get to run together at some point in the coming weeks. I woke up at 5 AM to practice pre-race fueling with overnight oats. I was able to get the meal down 45 minutes before I started the run. It sat comfortably in my stomach which was a very good sign. That probably means that I can increase the volume of food as these runs get longer to really make sure my glycogen stores are fully topped off for fuel.

After the run, I took a 90 minute nap in the afternoon. I woke up with a sore throat which I’m hopeful will go away shortly. The last thing I need is to get sick in the middle of the building phase of training. I’m not super worried about it since tomorrow I’m just doing a short lift and mowing the lawn. We’ll see how I recover tonight.

8/17

Okay yellow light. It’s Sunday morning and we’re getting ready for church. I’ll be honest, I don’t feel great. I got plenty of sleep but it wasn’t very restorative. I’m gonna try to be as light on myself as possible before mowing this afternoon. I will limit my activity level and try to find restful moments between now and the kid’s nap time. My throat is killing me but no fever, just the throat soreness for now.

I mowed the lawn and stayed hydrated despite the sun. My workout went really well, I even PR’d for a single set of pull-ups! 9 is the new record. I think I can hit 15 in a row by the end of the year. I’m very fatigued and it’s unclear if that’s due to muscle soreness or immune suppression and sickness. We’ll keep monitoring it throughout the night and this week.

8/18

I woke up feeling like I’ve been hit by a train. My watch alarm went off at 6 AM and I was hopeful that I’d be able to get a morning run in and get a good start to the week. The moment I woke up I knew that was not in the cards. I hit snooze and waited for the kids to wake up around 7. I’m exhausted but I’m going in to work despite the fatigue. My watch says my overnight heart rate variability was 106 ms (a sign of sickness and not adequately recovering from training). My training readiness is in the low 60s. I still have a sore throat but now I also have body soreness, head fog and a cough. I haven’t had a proper rest day in awhile so this was my body’s way of forcing me to rest.

I came home from work feeling so sick I could barely stand. Lane told me to take a long hot shower and lay on the couch until dinner. I did both things, trying to play with the kids as much as I physically could but the body aches were almost debilitating. I ended up going to bed at 8:30 PM.

8/19

I am working remotely today. My watch says I got 9 hours of sleep but it did almost nothing to help my body recover. I still feel bad but not as horrible as yesterday. Not much else to report. It’s a sweatpants day. I’m going to focus on hydration and protein to help with muscle soreness and promote good recovery for tonight. I might try to get a walk in tonight to get the blood flowing.

I did not end up going on a walk. Lane made chicken white cheddar mac n cheese. It was phenomenal. I feel better and I anticipate a return to work tomorrow and a short easy run in the evening before bible study.

8/20

I ran 3.33 miles, 1.7 miles to and 1.1.6 back home from my bible study. I felt much better for moving my legs and getting the blood flowing. Kept the heart rate in zone 2, a truly easy run hovering around 10:10 pace. Our bible study is continuing through the book of Mark which we have been slowly studying since January. This week we talked about good soil, how we as Christians can posture our hearts so that the seeds of God’s Word can grow in us. It had me thinking about the habits I’m choosing to participate in that are bringing me closer or further away from God. I’ve said it before, I feel much closer to God when I’m running. There’s something about building physical endurance that teaches valuable lessons about the pain of life we all go through.

I can be a pretty hardheaded person. I almost never want to take time off from training, especially in the middle of a marathon build. But my body needed it and I forced myself to mentally “get over” the feeling of falling behind. I have to trust that a setback can be overcome if I stay consistent when I’m healthy. Running through sickness isn’t productive, it just feeds my ego. That’s not what this is about. The moment this running thing becomes all about me is the moment I lose the love of it. There’s a reason that picture of 4 names on my arm precedes each of these blog posts. It’s about them. It’s about Jesus and using the physical body He has given me to glorify Him. It’s about Lane and becoming a more resilient and servant hearted husband. It’s about Joy and John and building myself into a father figure worth following.

Keep Going!