Surfing the Edge of Overtraining

As the days have settled in to fall, and I've found myself with more time now that the kids are back in school, I'm finding that I'm struggling with too much training.  I head out for a 6 mile run, only to decide to tack on another mile or two . . . two or three days in a row.  Inevitably, I find myself waking up with a scratchy throat, elevated heart rate.  If I ignore the signs and decide to run anyway - wham, a real cold.

I'm trying a new method.  I will run or play soccer three days in a row at most, and then take a rest day whether I want to or not.  I find it difficult to keep perspective.  I want to tally the miles, see the improvement.  I am struggling to keep my recovery runs slow, even when I leave the Garmin at home and refuse to look at my watch.  The hard part is remembering that this is not a short term goal.  I don't know how to relax and just enjoy the ride.  But I am trying.

Coming up next week is the Run Like Hell.  I'm hoping to break a 1:50, but there are some serious hills, so I'll be happy with a finish.  (Yeah, right.)  A big landslide is blocking Terwilliger at this point, so I'm not sure if the course will be the same.  Just hope they don't add any more hills.