Good Runs = Always Needed

Sometimes, when running morale and overall motivation is low, you just need a good run.

Take tonight for instance. It's Monday and I haven't run since the (now infamous) 10-miler last Tuesday. That run, although exciting to have finished strong, was not what you would consider a "good" run. At no point during that run did I find a comfortable pace nor feel like I wasn't fighting for each step. At mile 4 my knee started to tweak (not sure what else to call it) and I ended up with a popping and stiff hip for the rest of the week because of compensating for it. All-in-all, not my best run.

Which leads us to today.

I could have gotten in a run on Saturday or Sunday, but I used Mother's Day weekend as an excuse not to. I was home at my parents' house, doing things with them, and it was very easy to put off running with so much else going on. So tonight I knew I had to get back on schedule and as the time drew nearer to go, started to dread it. I even told a friend earlier today that I needed to "re-motivate."

Then I ran and it was amazing!

Unlike the rest of this month, so far, today was unseasonably cool (around the high-60s) and a little overcast (albeit not raining). I started out in my usual uphill direction, waiting for the feeling of straining for each step or shortness of breath and it never came! I breezed through 5 miles, running down my favorite dirt path and past the elementary school, waved at other runners and considerate drivers (that blog will be saved for another time). The dirt path is lined with green trees and bushes, honeysuckles and white flowers intertwined along the branches. One long breath in and your lungs fill with that sweet smell of spring and summer. I inhaled again and again, savoring it and the cool air.

I trotted back into my neighborhood faster than I left, smiling, breathing steadily and with no pain.

This was, hands down, the perfect run to provide that "re-motivation" I needed.

Today's run:
5.01 miles at an 8:57 pace (44:59 total)

Last week:
10.01 miles at a 9:28 pace (1:34:49 total)