My ultra training has
begun and that means no more shenanigans. Shenanigans? Me?
Yes, as in "well, I'll just skip my run today because...." or
"another rest day isn't so bad..." I've always struggled with
the Monday-to-Friday runs. Always. Work gets the best of me and
often bleeds into my lunch time when I might run, then I get home to find Bella
ready and rearing to play, and lastly, all the household stuff like cooking
dinner, picking up, fixing the roof, retiling the bathroom, building an
addition, etc seem to take over. Before I know it, the opportunity to run
has passed and my weekly mileage plummets.
No more!!!
The last two weeks have
been an exercise in commitment and discipline for me. I haven't been a
high mileage runner (even when I ran StoneCat 50!), often excusing a mid-week
run day here and there from my training calendar. But these last two
weeks, I've kept EVERY important running date I made with myself. Today
was a bit more challenging because today's run called for 6 miles. So, I
coordinated my schedule to best fit a 6 mile run at lunch with time to shower
and emerge back to my desk looking relatively put together.
I had a fantastic
run! I ran around the lake and, at the 3 mile mark, turned around and
headed INTO the wind to return to work. Although the wind added some
resistance, it also gave me a different perspective since I rarely run that
direction around the lake. I wondered if I'd have any kind of kick in me
after running 6.5 miles yesterday at a decent clip. And I did!!
When I returned, a girl I
met recently (and ran the lake with once) stopped me in the foyer and struck up
a conversation:
Girl:
"Hey good run?"
Me:
"Yes, and so nice out finally! No mittens!!"
Girl:
"Hm, I should get out there...it is still officially lunch hour
afterall"
Me:
"Oh you totally should!"
We said our "see
ya's" and I hit the shower.
On my way back to my desk,
I saw her again, but this time she was headed to the bathroom/shower carrying
HER gym bag and, with a big smile, said "I'm getting out
there!"
Nothing like walking/running the talk and then realizing your walk/run inspired someone
else. Good feeling!
Awe, that is such a great story! I love seeing others running and knowing I can go out and do the same thing.
ReplyDeleteIt always feels good when you inspire someone to get out there and get active.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to be "swimming" the talk next week. I have a half ironman in just 10 weeks - yikes! And this once a week swim isn't going to cut it. Time to get busy next week...no more excuses!
This is great! Consistency is key for the long distance races and it's awesome that you are committing to running during the week. And great that you are inspiring others!
ReplyDelete