What happens when you rely on technology

So this week is a step down week and I only needed to do 10 miles for my long run.  So I had planned to do the run during little one's preschool time.  So everything was going smooth, until I went to link with my Nike Plus GPS watch.  It would not link= I wouldn't know my mileage.  I had not plotted  my run prior because I have been running with my watch and was planning on relying on it for my route/mileage.

My awesome Coach (aka Husband) gave to me as a gift after finishing the Rock N Roll 1/2 in Chi-town.
I really love it- it is user friendly and has everything I need (miles, pace, time, stopwatch, etc).  I had been using my "coach's" Garmin and just felt like I wasn't going to use enough of the multiple functions Garmin offers in their GPS watch.  It is quite a bit more money than the watch I was given and that is due to all the extras you are paying for.  I'm not an "extra" person and the basics are just fine by me.

Here's my new running buddy- I love the look, super light weight and love the blue color.

So I have been using my watch for almost a month and have never had the problem I had this morning.  Instead of just standing there like a deer in headlights I just started running.  I had a basic plan of route and so was going to stick with it.  I felt really good on the first half of the run and when I thought I had gone about 5 miles and based on time I decided  to turn around.  I thought I was probably a little short of the 10 miles, but all the time I wasted trying to "link" the watch along the way and prior to starting I was nervous about getting the run done in time before picking up the little one from preschool.

I headed back the same way I came to make tracking the distance easier.  The second 1/2 was hard.  My legs felt so tired and my arms were sore too.  So when I returned at my car and only 1 hour and 36 minutes had passed I figured I was under my 10 mile goal.  If I run about 10 minute mile it should have taken me more like 1 hour and 40-45 minutes with the breaks, etc fiddling with the watch.

Well I went home and "mapped my route" and sure enough I was short, by 1.3 miles- UGH!  I totally believe in getting your long runs in each week- you can cut the other runs short during the week, but not the long run.  So now what?  Well I'm heading to the  rec center with my kids to swim after school so I may just jump on the treadmill and get my 1.3 miles in so I can feel like I did 10 miles today.  I have to let go that I didn't get it in all at one time/run.

So weird that I ran 17 miles last week and felt good and this week I felt like I was dragging tree trunks up and down the route and didn't even do the full 10 I was suppose to.  Onto another week of running in about 3 days- always good to have a fresh start.

Moral of above: if you want to make sure you get specific miles in always good to "map run" before run and not just rely on technology- that way there can't be excuses other than your own lazy/tired/sick, etc excuses that prevent you from getting the mileage done.