Running out of steam

I. hate. end of term.

Each of my classes in and of themselves contain a perfectly reasonable amount of work: a couple of books, a couple of essays, a couple of tests. Shouldn't be a big deal. But multiply that times six (yes, I'm taking six courses, I must be crazy) and you've got yourself waaaay too much to do and not nearly enough time to do it in.

These past two weeks have been so hectic - churning out papers one after the other, madly catching up on all sorts of reading I've let slide. And the end doesn't seem any closer - only three weeks to go until the end of classes, but it seems an eternity away...

The work, the studying, I can deal with - hey, I've been a student for umpteen years, I'm a pro at handling this stuff and handing my work in on time despite all the odds. The problem, though, is that it's all reflecting on my running. I've been running, yes; in fact I'm happy to say I've kept to my schedule very consistently. But it hasn't been fun - each time I go out there I feel like I'm slogging through sand or snow or a bottomless gaping pit, and I've slowed so drastically it's hard to believe I PR-ed at a race a mere two weeks ago.

It might be the stress, but I have a feeling it's more the burnout - specifically, I'm just constantly tired and not getting enough sleep. Plus, I've cut down my caffeine intake recently, and while I think long-term that's going to be good for me, it's definitely putting chains around my ankles for the time being. I'm even getting fatter, I swear. Grrr... I think I might be falling apart.

Well, I guess that's enough whining - time to grin and bear it. At least I can look forward to a good solid three week holiday before I write exams. That will be plenty of time to sleep, sleep sleep, and run, run, run. Oh, yeah, I guess maybe I'll get some studying in there too... somewhere :)