Day 27-Forced Rest

Today I had to force myself to rest.  And by rest, I mean…I sewed most of the day.

peace in our hearts

No book reports to supervise.

No to-dos.  Well, there were to-dos, I just ignored them.  Except for a couple of loads of laundry that I managed to put away.

I thought about going on my long run today.  We took the girls on a 3 mile family run, and I thought I was going to fall over with exhaustion when we were done.  I took that as a sign to put the long run on hold for today.  Maybe tomorrow.

I drank a lot of hot tea and EmergenC.

I wore my grandpa sweater.  Right now, I’m also wearing the scarf that I made but I’m too tired to look for the camera to get a picture of it.  Also, who wants to see my sick face?

Elwood Wilson is quietly snoring beside me.  The dog is at my feet.

I think it is time to call it a day.

This post is part of the 31 Day series-Mindful Moments.

Day 19-Slowing Down

What an amazing day off!

I’m sure you are on pins and needles, but in reality, my day was filled with the usual comings and goings of a Friday.  Housecleaning, laundry, an hour of watching sewing videos on youtube….

And a 10 mile run.  A 10 mile run with this amazing view.

I don’t know if I mentioned this, but since running my half marathon, I have decreased my mileage on my long runs.  Ten miles feels so much better.

I keep thinking of Sister Runner, telling me that I need to have fun when I’m running.

all joy

Today was actually fun. 

My camera was in the pouch of my hydration belt.  I felt like I was racing up Mt. Carbon to see the view.  Of course, racing is a relative term.

My legs were sore but I kept going.  No one passing me doing the grapevine today.  No one passing me at all.

When I got home I helped myself to a hot shower, a burrito and more coffee.  I did wait until I was out of the shower before the burrito and coffee.

I thought about yesterday’s discussion of multitasking.  I tried to take one project at a time. 

I even built in time for relaxing.

I decided against my full blown grocery trip to only get the items necessary for today and tomorrow.  I was tired of being rushed.

I enjoyed the moments.

I enjoyed the day.

This post is part of the 31 Day series-Mindful Moments.

Day 6-Endurance

I went on my long run this morning, and I wish that, for your sake, I would have brought my camera.  The view was amazing.  Snow on the foothills, but path below me was clear and dry.  The best part was that I was running on the paved trail, as opposed to dirt, so I was able to take some long looks at the scenery.

Shortly after my turn around point, a runner couple passed me.  Nothing feels more defeating as a runner until you are passed…twice.  I ran by them again while they were fully stopped to visit the poop room, and they caught up with me and passed me.  About 50 feet after I was passed the second time, the man turned sideways and started doing a grapevine motion with his feet.  Billy wasn’t sure what this meant when I relayed the story.  Maybe just google it.  But I feel that anyone who did high school athletics or any time of group aerobic exercise knows what this is.

Seriously, the guy had enough energy to pass me twice and then do fancy footwork.

I headed back up some giant elevation, slow and steady, as usual.  Not my complete turtle pace.  I looked up the hill a bit to notice that grapevine man had stopped running and was now walking the hill.  I continued my pace and passed him at the top (where he was completely stopped) and kept going…and felt victorious.

Lord of all joy

This wasn’t a celebration of my victory over this other runner.  This was a celebration of myself, and my personal running journey.

It reminded me of survival mode.

Survival mode was a long stretch of time when I worked seven days a week.  Survival mode wasn’t about quick bursts of energy and falling flat.  Survival mode was about the slow and steady. 

Not giving up even when my heart hurt and sleep deprivation made my eyes burn.

That was also a victory of endurance.

I thought about that journey on my way down the other side of the hill.  And when I looked back to pass some walkers, I noticed the running couple coming up behind me again.

And I sped up.

And didn’t let them pass me again. 

Of course, I did take another route on the path a quarter mile later…

This post is part of the 31 Day series-Mindful Moments

 

 

Day 5-Excuses

Yes, I realize this is a day late.  Last night I was so tired that I ran from the couch and into bed. Does anyone else get tired like that?  Where your body is so restless that you have to be in bed that very minute.  I’ve noticed that Katy has inherited it from me.  She’s been known to run up the stairs a few times.

After I was cozy in bed, I realized that I neglected the post for the day.  Last year, I probably would have made myself get up and post.  Last night, I chose to give myself some grace.

The weather in Colorado has been a bit weird lately, which has explained my daily sinus headaches. My head was so achy on Thursday.  And then Friday it snowed. 

no cares could destroy

I thought about this on Friday morning.  It was snowing.  Not a blizzard, of course, but wet and cold.  Most of the snow melted as it hit the ground.  I needed to get out and run. 

Billy and I were talking about that a while back.  How a good run after the week is over helps the transition from the work world to relaxation over the weekend.

I didn’t want the weather to distract me from what was important.  I didn’t want it to be an excuse.

So I ran.

And it was cold.

And my shoes were wet when I got home because I stepped in a few cold puddles.

But my head and heart felt clear.

This post is part of the 31 Day series-Mindful Moments.

 

 

Free

It has been years since I have been on a bike for fun.  Over ten years, I bet.  In fact, I’m pretty wobbly on a bike.  Thank goodness this is a still shot and not a video.

You know this love-hate relationship I have with running?  I like the sense of accomplishment, my body likes the exercise, I need the mental release.

But the actual running…sigh…there are moments when I would rather not be doing that.  Moments when my legs feel heavy and slow, moments when my lungs feel like they have no air, moments when the side stitch feels like my body is going to split in half, moments when I want to give up.

But this day riding a bike…I felt free.  Just like when I was a kid.  It was amazing.

I thought of my little Lucy’s words last year when we were enjoying a day and she said, I like this, right now.  I don’t have that feeling when I run.  Ok, I’ve had it a couple times, but it is usually fleeting with the incoming lactic acid. 

Riding a bike though, I can get behind that feeling.  I enjoyed the right now.

And this wasn’t serious bike riding.  As you can see, we are in a parking lot.  We rode over to the kids’ school.  By the way, isn’t this an amazing view?  Ten years out here and I still can’t get over the view.  I hope I never do.

No special butt-padded riding suits needed for this ride. 

It was about enjoying the moment.  Enjoying the right now.  Enjoying the simplicity of riding a bike, the rush of incoming childhood memories.

Of course, I will still run.  I have to run.  I’m too addicted to that post-run feeling.  And I love the simplicity of running.  Shoes and clothes are the only requirement.  Mark the Garmin is a nice perk.  No need to worry about flat tires or broken bikes.

Or spandex outfits.

 

Speaking of simplicity....I updated the comment box.  I hope this makes it a bit easier to leave comments.

Still Going

Ok, summer, I get it.  It’s hot.  And humid…for Colorado.  But I need to run.

We all know that I don’t necessarily enjoy running.  But I still do it.

This is getting ridiculous though.

How early do I have to get up to run and avoid collapsing from heat exhaustion?

Last week, I pulled the plug on my long run.  Only a half mile short of my goal.  I couldn’t do it any longer.  At the 4.5 mile mark, I muttered allowed, This sucks.  By 10 miles, I was actively swearing…in my head.  A lot of swears.

My last mile is mostly shaded and by a creek.  When Mark the Garmin beeped at the 12 mile mark, I sat down in an offshoot of the creek.  And pretty much took a bath with my clothes on.  Thank God for cold water that flows from the mountains.

I should add that the paved trail that runs along this creek has a lot of traffic, and there are multiple housing units that face the creek.  I’m sure that someone thought it was hilarious.  Or creepy.  Or both.

This morning was a short run, and it was still miserable.  Billy asked how it went and I replied, I’m not made for this summer running.

But I will still do it.

Internal Struggle

It’s funny to me that other people think of me as a runner.  Because I really don’t like running.

I like being able to clear my head.  My body is grateful for the exercise.  And I feel justified in drinking a beer in celebration or eating an insane amount of food after a long run.

But the actual running…sometimes each step is a pain in the ass.  Sometimes with every step, I question, what the hell am I doing?  Why did I choose this?

Today I got up at 5:15 to run 5k.  I did not want to run.  I wanted to sit on the couch and have my coffee alone time.

Instead, I got dressed in the clothes I laid out the night before and was out the door by 6. 

I first saw people on the paved trail a quarter mile in.  I happened to know them and gave them a friendly hello.  I don’t like to see people that I know when I exercise because then I have to put on this show that, Oh, yes, I am running.  This is so easy-I’m in such good shape.  Even with complete strangers, I pretend not to be panting and wheezing.  I have no idea what that’s about.

I noticed quite a few people on the trail, all wanting to beat the heat of the day, I’m sure.  So there was a lot of faking it.

When I hit my last mile, I felt a pain in my foot.  For me, running is only about 10% physical and 90% mental.  I say that because I know that my body can run these distances, but my mind likes to point out every opportunity to stop.  So this pain, it was simply a pain, but my mind had me convinced that I was injured and should stop running immediately to prevent further injury.  I also had a side cramp.  My mind wanted me to know how good it would feel to stop and walk for a bit.

I constantly have this internal struggle where I go back and forth.  One part of me wants to give up, the other is reminding me how long it will take to get home if I stop running or how I will be stranded in the middle of the park.

Honestly, I have no idea how I can run 12 miles because I was running one-fourth of that distance today, and I was ready to give up. 

But the amazing thing is that my legs kept moving.

And my body was happy to have the exercise.  And my stomach was happy to eat that Snickers tonight after the girls went to bed.  They caught me, of course.