Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
(Looks at the clock. . . Feels very confused)
"It's 4:30am, why is my alarm going off? Where am I?" (hits the snooze button. Alarm goes off again at 4:35)
"OMG! I'm supposed to run today!"
That was the first 5 minutes of my morning. Fortunately, I had my running clothes already set out so it didn't require a whole lot of thinking. That's the thing with runners and triathletes (and I suppose other dedicated athletes as well) You just go through the movements of the morning, and before you know it you are outside running. Your body follows the mind, and your mind has to be in the right place or at least somewhat aware of what you are trying to do.
(Looks at the clock. . . Feels very confused)
"It's 4:30am, why is my alarm going off? Where am I?" (hits the snooze button. Alarm goes off again at 4:35)
"OMG! I'm supposed to run today!"
That was the first 5 minutes of my morning. Fortunately, I had my running clothes already set out so it didn't require a whole lot of thinking. That's the thing with runners and triathletes (and I suppose other dedicated athletes as well) You just go through the movements of the morning, and before you know it you are outside running. Your body follows the mind, and your mind has to be in the right place or at least somewhat aware of what you are trying to do.
This is the golf course, which is not where we ran, but gives you an idea of the place. So the plan was to meet some runners from the Go Run running group at Brook Valley to run a 5 mile loop. I'm more than able to do this distance so I was ready to challenge myself with the rolling "hills" in that neighborhood. I was the first to arrive (at 5:05am making me 10 minutes early which NEVER happens) I looked around and didn't see anyone so I had a slight panic thinking it was the wrong day or something. I turned up the music in my car, stepped out, and started doing some jumping jacks and plyometric exercises to get ready for the 5:15am start time. At 5:15 people started to show up. We started running at 5:25. Being that the sun doesn't come up until 7:15, I came armed with two lights. The first light is one I have used for a while. It is the Nathan Strobe Light. They come in different colors and have a flashing light that can be seen from far away. I have this light in pink, green, and yellow. The only problem I have with this light is that the batteries tend to not last very long. The other light I brought was my absolute favorite: The CYGOLITE Dash 320 which I got from the bike shop over the summer. (Click here for a video about it) Cars are totally confused when they see this light in strobe mode and want to move way over because they can't tell exactly what it is, they just know they don't want to hit it! I apply the same rules of riding as running: Run like you are invisible!
Finished running before the sun came up. I love it!!
So I ended up only running 3 miles with the group, as the continued pace started to be what I was doing my half mile speed intervals at a few days ago. Running is my weak sport and you can really do a lot of damage if you do too much too soon and don't check your ego. I decided to peel off from the group to not do any damage before my base plan even starts. It began to sprinkle a little but I love running in the rain. In fact, I often seek out the rain to run. (Flashbacks to running during a tornado warning and getting hit with hail a few years ago, although in my defense I thought it was just a thunderstorm and didn't check the news.) When I made it back to the car, I did some lunges and more plyometric exercises before getting in the car and heading home. As I drove, I started thinking about how I hated that I (once again) didn't finish something that I started. As I pulled into the parking lot of my apartment I wondered if Haro would entertain the idea of running another mile or so. I have been working on building her endurance and figured she might hang for at least a mile.
Haro doesn't like all the attention from the camera. She had a great run this morning! Haro nailed it! I was so proud of her. It was a slight sprinkle and that didn't bother her one bit. Bud is a good little runner, but he fears pretty much everything which can make him unpredictable and a little frustrating to run with especially when it is raining. I love where I live, but certain times of the day/night can be a little shady so I wouldn't have even considered running alone. Haro has a certain look about her that keeps the wrong people away from me, and I am thankful to have her by my side. Bud isn't the slightest bit intimidating, so that is another reason I picked Haro to run with me over Bud. Plus, Bud is kinda lazy and was sleeping when I was ready to go. Before I knew it, we were coming around the corner at 2 miles. I hit my watch and said "Whew! We're all done Haro!" She looked at me like, "Oh, that's it?" I was proud that I had thrown down 5 miles, even if I had broken it into two workouts.
It didn't matter that I had to split the workout into two parts. What mattered was that I listened to my body ("This is too fast, too soon") and broke my workout up into manageable parts. It worked out for Haro too, as she is a maniac without exercise.
The plan for the rest of the day is to do one more workout (another T25 workout from BeachBody) and then maybe hit the bike trainer to stretch out my legs. It's going to be a good day. It may be raining, but it's going to be almost 80 degrees today. That feels like Merry Christmas in the tropics!
It didn't matter that I had to split the workout into two parts. What mattered was that I listened to my body ("This is too fast, too soon") and broke my workout up into manageable parts. It worked out for Haro too, as she is a maniac without exercise.
The plan for the rest of the day is to do one more workout (another T25 workout from BeachBody) and then maybe hit the bike trainer to stretch out my legs. It's going to be a good day. It may be raining, but it's going to be almost 80 degrees today. That feels like Merry Christmas in the tropics!
Finished the second run and the sun STILL wasn't up yet!
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