After a couple of months with my treadmill out of action, I finally got it fixed this week. No big deal, right? Well, as it turns out, getting the mill back may be just the thing I needed to get my ass back in gear and running in the way I need to be to gear up for the season, with the culmination being the Marine Corps Marathon in DC on October 30.

To put it bluntly, I took this past winter off, doing sporadic running, an event here and there, but for the most part, laying around and eating like my old (and I stress OLD) self. The result was an extra 20 lbs, loss of the conditioning I had worked so long and hard for over the previous 24 months, and worst of all, a near total lack of motivation. It's not that I didn't want to get out there and run. But you know that little voice that tells you to "skip this one, you can make it up later"? Well, mine was not a little voice. It was a platoon of armed guerillas. What could I do? But seriously, I am convinced that motivation, like virtually every emotion or reaction we have, is chemical in nature, and for whatever reason, my chemistry was not of a mind to put in the miles.

Re-enter the treadmill. I didn't realize how much not having it as an option affected my motivation to train. Once I got on for my first run after it was fixed, my original training spark stared to return. Don't get me wrong, I love running outdoors, but being able to get changed and jump on the mill (while watching the Phillies game), especially on the later side of the evening, is a huge plus for me. I now remember that when I was doing my most productive training over the past 2 years, it was a mix of mill and road runs. For the most part, I ran inside during the week, and outdoors on the weekends. And that works for me! Trying to do it all outdoors just gave me too much opportunity to find excuses not to run. It's too late. Too dark. Too cold. Raining. The Phillies are on...  etc.

Not to mention (and I know this runs counter to what a lot of people feel), but I like running on the treadmill. It's much easier on the legs, and I don't need to think bout my pace, other than pushing a button and keeping up! I call it the 'mindless miles'. Running outdoors seems to require more planning and effort to monitor your pace. That's great and necessary, but it's kind of nice to get in a good chunk of the weekly miles without having to think about it too much.

These last 2 nights I have run 4 and 3 miles on the mill, respectively, and it was like catching up with an old friend. The feeling of getting in the miles was great, and for the first time in quite a while I felt the runner's high that we all know and love.

Welcome back, Mr. Mill. I missed ya.