Trail running is getting easier
Appalachian Trail
I’ve been hitting the Appalachian Trail for runs very frequently over the last month (including 3x in the last 8 days), and I’ve noticed it is getting mentally and physically easier. When I first started running there I was spending a lot of time focusing on the terrain right in front of me and felt like I was spending 90% of my brain cycles just making sure I didn’t trip over a root, rock, or uneven ground.
I realized today during my run that I was still looking at the ground a few steps ahead of me, but I felt like I was mentally handling it all in the background except for a few places where it was particularly tricky. It was nice being able to just get lost in my thoughts during the run. I can also feel my ankles are much more stable when I am landing on uneven terrain.
The section I like to run on is fairly tame, but I think as my skills grow I’ll start to experiment with running on tougher trails.