Good Job

Some days are just harder than others. My husband headed out at 5:30 this morning to attend a master’s swim class at the gym. Two minutes later he re-entered the bedroom to notify me that our car had been broken into. Sign o’ the times? Or just some punk kids? Either way, another bill, another tragedy (of sorts) and another headache. So, what did we do? My husband took the second car to the gym, and I got on the phone with the insurance company who said it would be cheaper to pay for it ourselves than go through them. What am I paying insurance for again?? Anyway, it took several hours to get things moderately wrapped up at work and for the tension to sufficiently build before I pulled on my running shoes and headed out the door. By that time it was early afternoon and all I could think of was how much I wanted to get away from the house/office (same location) and step onto trail, or pavement, or even rocky terrain. Anything, really, but be indoors looking at the number of email requests I needed to return, the amount of work that needed to be done and the bills that continue to pile up. Sign o’ the times?

Back to the pavement. I drove quietly down to the fish hatchery, saying my thanks for a running car, sunshine and some time to myself. You know, running is a mental game. Sometimes more mental than physical – maybe that’s the norm instead of the exception, but it’s hard to overcome. Though my heart was saying, “Just get there and run, Leah,” my mind was whispering, “Are you sure about this? There are so many things you should be doing. It’s getting warm. You know you don’t like to run in the heat.” And on…and on…and on. I could have quit right there and just headed back to work. The mind is a powerful weapon. But, I didn’t.

I stepped out of my car, strapped on my water belt, set my Nike+ Sportband and headed out. Immediately my lungs grumbled at me. They seemed to be saying, “Grrr…Leah…grrr…wheeze…not sure you can do this….” I ignored them, took some deep breaths and plodded on. I was feeling pretty good about my pace, around a 9mm, but then it happened. Some guuuy just had to pass me in what appeared to be an easy lope, hardly even breathing (I swear!) and just kept on going. Oh, how defeating it can feel to be passed as if you’re standing still. I decided to stare at the ground instead of at the back of Mister-Easy-Runner-Dude and told myself to not look at him. “You are out here for yourself. Not for him. Not for anyone else.” I had planned on doing 4 miles, but ended up doing 5.24. Let’s just round up to five and a quarter, shall we? Around mile four my stomach flipped, so I walked a minute, grabbed some Jelly Belly Sport Beans, swallowed a few gulps of Heed, and finished up the run. The final quarter mile was an 8.47mm pace. My overall pace was 9.17. Though I didn’t feel 100% on the run, I’m glad I went. Sometimes, the toughest days are the ones you want to crawl into bed. But I swear to this: I always feel better after I exercise. Even when it’s not the best run, it’s still something. It’s an easy way to pat oneself on the back and say, “Good job.”

What’s it worth to you?

This was my first weekend running with my new team/club, the Folsom Road Runners! There were maybe 15 of us who met at Rodeo Park in Folsom, bright and early Saturday morning. I picked up a new friend, Rebecca, along the way. We met while both of us were running down Almond Ave. and exchanged phone numbers. Turns out she lives right up the street from me and I coaxed her into running with my team this past weekend. Whitney (who also posts on this blog) met us out there for her first run with the team. It was really interesting and a bit intimidating. I felt a little out of place knowing that everyone was probably going to be a bit faster, run farther, etc. But it worked out well. Our coach had mile markers on the bike trail for us and so we headed off in our perspective groups. Rebecca and I made up the five mile group, Whitney ran 9 and there were a few who ran 11. Of course, Rebecca and I chatted the whole time so we actually went just over six instead of five (we missed the turn-around point). Anyway, the exciting part of this story isn’t that I actually got my tush out of bed to run that early in the morning, but the connection I felt out there with the other runners.

Our coach, Kristen, tooled along on her cruiser between the groups. She doled advice, funny stories, suggestions, and answered questions. Everyone I saw said hello (even the cyclists) and all of my teammates were very nice. There is kind of a thrill that happens when you run with a group of people. The time and the miles pass rather quickly. You connect with those who have similar goals and you can find encouragement through just about everyone you meet.

FYI: Folsom Road Runners just changed their pricing schedule. Anyone who joins now will receive an entire year’s worth of training and bi-weekly runs with a USATF certified coach for just $150. It may seem like a lot, but it works out to just $12/month. You can’t buy coaching serves for that! So, what are new friends, exercise, a sense of fulfillment, pride and joy worth to you? Not to mention a great excuse to find a babysitter and work out a little pent up tension (does anyone else have a stressful job?)?