The weeks are just flying by and yet again I realized I had not blogged about my training in three weeks! So, in an attempt to catch up, here is a summary of the past three weeks.
Week 6: Ran 2 times during the week (total of 5.5 miles) and long run (9 mi.) on Sunday. Practiced yoga twice. Two rest days.
Week 7: Ran 3 times during the week (total of 10 miles) and long run (6 mi.) on Sunday. Practiced yoga three times. One rest day.
Week 8: Ran 3 times during the week (total of 11 miles ) and long run (10 mi) on Sunday. Practiced yoga 3 times. One rest day.
Overall training has gone pretty well. I’ve been following my training program pretty well, actually – better than the past even. The one change I’ve made that has seemed to be great is that I’ve pushed my long run to Sunday mornings so I can go to my favorite Sat morning yoga class! It is a win-win! Then, I just adjust my schedule so Monday is my rest day instead of Sunday. So far I’ve only had one long run that was really tough to get my butt in gear and get done – this past weekend. I usually do it early on Sunday morning – get it out of the way before church on Sunday. I planned to do that yesterday too. I got up early so I could eat breakfast and let it digest for awhile before heading out. Well, I’m not sure why, but I was just not feeling it yesterday. I was drinking my coffee, cuddled in a fleece and decided to do it in the afternoon instead. I’m not sure if it is because the weather is cooler now or what (you would think I would like this since I’m a sweaty girl, right?!), but just gave in to the couch, coffee and balancing the checkbook. Hey, at least I was productive, right? So then all morning, I’m preoccupied with this long run. I gotta run 10…I gotta run 10. Ugh. After lunch and waiting a bit I finally just gave myself the lecture that I just need to “do it”. Thank you, Nike. So I begrudgingly laced up, filled up my fuel belt and headed out. The first 3 miles were awful, mostly because of my head. No, I didn’t have a headache…I had a bad attitude! I kept thinking negative thoughts like “I don’t want to do this.” or “I’m going so slow”. Not very positive or motivating thoughts!! But after I seemed to find my groove physically and got the first hill out of the way, I switched my thinking to notice my beautiful surroundings, think about the people on my prayer list, and just be in the moment. I began to plan an alternative second half of my route which was fun and different. That mind over matter stuff is no joke. I finished the run strong and, like always, I was so glad I did it!!
There are a few things learned here. First there is so much truth in that simple message of “just do it”. How many times do we worry and mull something over…analyze and talk ourselves out of doing something hard, or doing the right thing? Or is it just me. I don’t think so. When usually it turns out that thinking about the thing is way worse than just doing…or actually just starting the thing. And how many times do we miss out on an opportunity because we wait? I’m glad I got out there when I did so I could enjoy the afternoon sunshine before it got cloudy later in the day. Second, the power of positive thinking is so powerful. It is not just a good title for a self help book. It is a legit strategy. What we think TOTALLY impacts how we feel and in this case, how we perform. One might think that as a 44-year-old I would have already learned these lessons. And maybe I have. But that is what is so cool about looking at life as a big classroom. There are always opportunities for “do-overs” for us slow-learners and for reinforcing important lessons for those of us who need to be reminded. So next time you start to procrastinate, stop thinking about it and just go for it instead, keeping your eyes open for what is waiting to be revealed to you!
