Second Sackville Run = Success

Wow, my run was definitely not as zen as Jenni's today, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. After reading Jenni's thoughts on running for the sake of running and being in the moment, I can only imagine that my next run will be even better.

Today I tackled the same 2.6 miles from Friday, but at a cooler temperature and and a better level of hydration. On average it was definitely better than my first Sackville run. At first as I was running up and down the rolling hills I thought that I would definitely not want to run back up and down the same hills. These are not very motivating thoughts to have while running. There is a reason I generally avoid hills like the plague - I hate them. If Jenni would have been with me, she would have said something like, "We got this!" or "Don't look at the hill, just look at the ground." It is not nearly as convincing when I tell myself. Soon enough though, I got into the running zone and barely noticed the hills. I finished in a reasonable time and felt grrrrreat! For the rest of the day, I was feeling a little less great. Another reason why I generally avoid hills is because they give me shin splints. After my bad run the other day, I had mild shin splints. After my run today I had such bad shin splints that I could barely walk. My next run will definitely be on a flat surface!

My plan is to do 4 flat miles on a trail on Tuesday. Now that I have announced it publicly, I will have to do it.

Next time I do my 2.6 mile run though, I am definitely bringing a camera. There are sheep and cows and tractors and everything along the route. Ridiculous. I live in the boonies.

Today's summary
Distance: 2.6 miles, mostly pavement
Lessons learned: Hills suck especially when you are out of shape
Song that rocked my run: Private Idaho - The B52s

Running Rewind

I did it! I got up this morning at 6:45, and I headed down to Town Lake, and I set out on a 5 mile run. When I got to Town Lake, I parked at TxDot - homebase for many weekend runners. The loop heading west (from Congress to Mopac) is 5 miles. And the entire loop is 10 miles (from Mopac to the Longhorn Dam), so I was faced with the first decision of the morning. West, or East? West is the more familiar run. East is prettier. West has many more runners/bikers/dogs. East is quieter. So, East I went.

I consistently missed my mark for the first 24 minutes, running 5.5/1.5's instead of the planned 6/1's. It was around this time that I started reflecting on what running has become for me. It's a lot of numbers. Tracking miles, and minutes, and minutes per miles, and walk breaks. It's a constant battle of trying to one-up myself. And while there is nothing wrong with wanting to get better, I think I've lost sight of the big picture. I never started this to become some elite runner. I'm never going to win any prize for being a running phenom. The fact that I run should be the point. I think my closest friends and family are still waiting for this running phase to end. And I'm continually shocked that there are people who only know me as a "runner".

So, I let go of the watch. I stopped tracking minutes and miles. I started thinking about all the positive things. I'm healthy and I live in a place that is safe and beautiful and full of a community of people who are passionate about running. I was up early, and out running. And, in a short-ish amount of time (2 years) I've had some wonderful running accomplishments - 3 half marathons, 4 10Ks, one of them part of a team triathlon, a 12-person 200-mile relay, and some of the greatest running buddies I've found (here's looking at you LDH, R'OD, Boston T.Pod).

I gave myself a break for the rest of the run - I walked when I was tired. I stopped for water when I was hot. I ran slower when I needed to. And while I was fighting with two annoying problems (poison ivy on my neck that made me want to DIE, and the headphone issue that really needs solving), the rest of my run was delightful.

And when I finished, I remembered something that my Yoga instructor always says, "Remember, that where you are is exactly where you are supposed to be". It was not the fastest of runs, but why did it need to be? I haven't run in a while, I don't have a race coming up, I haven't been eating as a runner, I haven't been hydrating. It was just the attitude adjustment I needed.

In the end, turned out to be 6 miles! Gold star for 6 miles!

Terry Fox Run

For me, a key component in my motivational strategy involves training for something. I have been looking for runs in and around the Sackville area, and there are quite a few. In fact I was having a hard time making a decision. That was until this morning when I saw the site for the Confederation Bridge Terry Fox Run. Terry Fox is a Canadian hero who attempted to run across Canada after losing a leg to cancer. He called his journey the Marathon of Hope. He also just happens to be from Vancouver and just happens to have attended my alma mater, Simon Fraser University.

Every year in mid-September, there are Terry Fox runs held all across Canada to raise money for cancer research. I spent my childhood participating in these runs at school, but have lapsed in participation since high school. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Terry Fox run, and I am going to renew my participation by running 12.9 km across the Confederation Bridge from New Brunswick to P.E.I. to raise money for cancer research. Both of my paternal grandparents were taken by cancer, so this is a cause that is near and dear to me.

You can sponsor me here http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?registrationID=910099

It's a catch 22 of a slippery slope into darkness.

Am I being dramatic, maybe. Do I exaggerate, definitely. Is it a serious problem, for sure!

I love to run. I love the way it makes me feel like I've done something productive. I love the way my life goes when I'm running consistently. I love the challenge of running. Basically, nothing bad can come from running. And when I'm in a good routine, I actually enjoy getting up early and going. It's peaceful, it's productive, it's pretty awesome. Like LDH says, running saves lives - or at least mine. Except when it doesn't.

Here's how my running slump usually goes:

Some traumatic or intense life event happens and I grant myself "permission" to slack off. I sleep in, I eat crap, I mope. This leads me to think of running as a chore. And the longer I put off the running, the guiltier I feel about it. As I continue to not run, my mood declines, other life events happen, and running becomes a distant memory. Bad mood begets no running, no running begets bad mood; lather rinse repeat. And thus it goes.

Until one day, when I remind myself that running, while it now seems like something loathesome and horrific, will actually solve all my problems. Running will make me feel productive and accomplished. It will make me feel awake and happy. It will make me feel peaceful and relaxed. And I do, have to coach myself through this. Until it sinks in. And then, I'm back!

The end of May was rough for me, running wise. The Ragnar Relay that some friends and I had been planning for the better portion of a year had come and gone. LDH up and deserted me. And, the first post-ragnar sans LDH run I went on was terribly sad and miserable. I went runless for the better part of three weeks, until Wednesday, when I finally dragged myself to a treadmill (blech, I hate treadmills). And, ohhhhboy, was it TERRIBLE. Not the thing I needed to pull me out of the current running funk. I'll try again, outside, in the early morning on Sunday. I'll return to Town Lake. And all will be right in the world.

Route: 2.4 miles on a treadmill.

Time: if I told you, you'd cry for me.

Lessons learned: treadmill running does not do the same as outdoor running to help you overcome downward spiral of doom.

First Sackville Run = Fail

I left Austin, Texas on May 30 knowing that I would be traveling for two weeks before I would be in my new house in Sackville, NB. I packed a large quantity of running clothes because I knew I would have nothing to do for 2 weeks except run. Yay! Except I totally underestimated the power of my own laziness. Without Jenni there to force me out of bed and into my running shoes, I just stayed in bed and sometimes on the couch. In the entire two weeks, I only ran once, and it was on a treadmill!

I moved into my new house 4 days ago and every day since then I have vowed to go for a run "tomorrow." Conveniently, tomorrow never came. Yesterday my excuse was eating too many chips. Today my excuse was getting up to late. Finally Jenni convinced me to JUST DO IT, DAMMIT. So I did. I set out for my run at 2 pm. It was a lovely breezy day here in Sackville, and it felt amazing to get out running. I felt so amazing that I didn't even mind the rolling hills on my short 2.6 mile run/walk. Usually I avoid hills at all costs, but today I loved them. Well, at least for the first 11-12 minutes. I was running too fast and then the sun came out and the wind died down and it was damn hot. I wasn't very well hydrated, but I had thought to myself, well it's not like it is Texas. But let me tell you, it sure felt like it. I was hot and dehydrated and miserable, so the last 1.3 miles of my run consisted mostly of me running for 30 seconds to a minute and then walking for 3 minutes. It was pathetic. I even faked an injury because these obnoxious high school kids kept driving past me and yelling things. I was embarrassed that I was barely running, so I started limping. Seriously.

Summary:

Route: 2.6 miles, mostly pavement
Time: I don't even want to know.
Lessons learned: 1) Don't run while dehydrated. 2) Don't run in the peak afternoon sun even if you live in Canada.

Once upon a time in Texas.

Once upon a time in Texas there were two girls, let's call them Jenni and LDH. These two girls ran together often and encouraged each other to achieve running goals that they thought were not possible. It was magical and wonderful. Then one of those girls had the audacity to graduate and get a job a million miles away. And now neither of them has a full time running buddy to be accountable to at 6:30 am when staying in bed seems like a much better option than running. That is where this blog comes in. Although Jenni and LDH cannot pound the pavement or the trail together anymore, they can run together in spirit. And then they can write about it on blog. And they can encourage each other to keep running because running saves lives. Well, at least it saves us from losing our minds in the insanity that is academia.