For me, as a runner, everyday there are distractions. Here are a few I encountered today.
1. Rain. Well, drizzle really. Just enough to make me consider pushing my training run off until it went away....yeah, right, like that would happen. I put on my wet weather running gear.
2. My ipod battery was dangerously low. There was no way it would get me through a 3.5 mile run. I plugged it in and let it charge while I made the bed and tidied up.
3. COLD! Not only was it drizzly...it was cold too. I went inside and put on a fleece.
4. iPod malfunction. My fully charged iPod's Nike+ feature goes kaput on me and tells me I've completed my workout -- even though I only went 1/4 of a mile. I turned off the Nike+ and continued on with my rockin' play list.
5. Sarah's first 1/2 mile. She is excited, running spiratically, has to pee. I've realized that if I want her with me (and I do) I have to let her do her thing the first 1/2 mile...then she's good to go for the next 3 or 4. Oh, yeah, I also run slightly farther than the allotted mileage just to make up for any lag time in the first 1/2.
6. Too many clothes. That extra fleece I'd put on was making me hot. I kept going
7. A hill. Focus on a steady pace and keep a good song on the iPod -- hills are a distraction but not a problem.
8. Sore Knee. At mile 2.75 my knee started to hurt. I'm accustomed to this because it happens everytime. I'm tempted to stop...to take it easy...but I remember that my legs are strong and my core is the foundation to good running, so I concentrate on keeping my core solid, tightening my glutes to release pressure on my knees and, voila! I'm running straight past the three mile mark and onto the last 1/2 mile and faster too!
9. Wild Life. I had to keep myself from stopping to save a worm who had crawled out of the ground and onto the path. I really hate to see a worm so far from its dirty home. But I ran on. Then I saw the most beautiful bird. It was brown with dark brown spots and red tips under its feathers. I wanted to stop and stare but I was so close to finishing that I ran on....
10. The Mirror. Walking by the mirror and catching a glimpes of a healthier, happier looking me. Now that's a distraction I can live with.
RUN SISTER, RUN!
I love it!
ReplyDeleteIt's ironic; those distractions you write about seem SO daunting, during the run. But afterwards, doesn't the realization that those distractions didn't break you, and that you finished despite of them make you feel stronger?
Bring on the distractions!
Although, I have to admit....if my I-Pod Nike + told me my workout was done at the 1/4 mile mark, I probably would have took it as "a sign" and gone for ice cream.