And, on the 7th day I rested (and boy was it nice!).

However, my schedule had me back on the streets on Monday with a 5 miler. It was an effort. My heart rate was elevated by a good 10 bpm or more which meant that I was working harder for the same pace I ran the 5-miler in last week. Residual effects from Saturday's long run, I'm sure.

A friend has been trying to teach me how to train using a heart rate monitor. I've been paying attention to mine in the last couple of weeks and I know my resting HR, but...had yet to find out the max. I need to do that so that I can figure out what ranges are optimal for training.

So, in all my brilliance, I decided at the tail end of my 5-miler to take a shot at establishing my maximum heart rate. This means running uphill again and again and again as fast as you possibly can until you can't take it anymore.

I ran up the Nagle Road bridge about 6 or 7 times, but I never got my HR above 170. I'm sure that is not my maximum HR, but...it was yesterday because I just couldn't push it any harder.

This morning's schedule called for an 8 miler (this is a fall-back, rest week for me!) and I was tired the minute I stepped on the treadmill. I lowered the speed a bit, and about 5 miles into it, I knew I was trying to decide whether to push through and do the damn 8 miles or just call it quits and walk the last couple of miles.

A few months ago, there wouldn't have been a question. I'd have pushed through. I always pushed through and did the mileage my schedule called for, no matter what.

But, it can lead to injuries and fatigue and, worse, the complete lack of motivation to run.

So, at 6 miles I decided I'd had enough. I slowed it down to a walk and caught up on some reading -- the magazines are really piling up now that I don't walk on my days off.

What did I read? Runner's World, of course. Which, by the way, had three 6 pages of motivational phrases, thoughts, quotes, etc. in a story titled "101 Kicks in the Butt."

A selection of my favorites:

#12 -- Every mile you run burns roughly 100 calories. Think of your next six-miler as two slices of pizza.

#13 -- Running Commentary: "No one can say, 'You must not run faster than this or jump higher than that.' The human spirit is indomitable." -- Sir Roger Bannister, the first man to run a sub-four-minute-mile.

#18 -- The pile of dishes in the sink can wait until the sun goes down. Your run can't.

#37 -- You'll be wearing a bathing suit in another month or so.

#49 - Race results stay on Google forever.

#92 -- Forget about the big picture every now and then. Put away your training manual and your race calendar. Quit overthinking it. Run for today.

Are you in need of some motivation? Runner's World says you can sign up to receive daily motivational e-amil at: ww.runnersworld.com/motivate.