I have officially lost 5 pounds over the last week. It certainly took a lot of willpower to make the necessary dietary changes. Plus by body is sore from the extra activity. Some would say that willpower comes easily. I think something else gives strength to willpower... discomfort. As long as we are comfortable where we are we will not feel like we need to make any changes. All too often we become comfortable with our discomfort rather than making the choice to change we embrace it as the norm and do nothing about it. But discomfort is what gives us the drive to change. I was thinking about the baby eagle and how when it is time for them to grow up she removes all the "fluff" from the nest. This causes the bird great discomfort - enough for them to find another place to stay. Would it make any sense if the little bird went out and built a nest without the cushions so they could have one "just like mom's because it was so uncomfortable ? lol! Of course not! We ...

Mondays I try to get in a good little chunk of mileage. It kind of lets me stack it up so that it's easier to meet my mileage goals for the week. That way I don't feel like I am playing catch-up the rest of the week and there's less pressure to get it all in. I prefer going at least 5 miles on Mondays - Plus I'm coming off two rest days so it just makes sense! Sometimes I can imagine the hills are issuing me a challenge. I can't wait to tackle them and take 'em down! Yesterday was no different. I headed out and the big hill on my chosen route is about a mile and a half from the house. That gives me plenty of time to get warmed up good before I get there! I love the challenge! What I wasn't ready for was the return trip. (I prefer out and backs because I know my legs need the well rounded workout.) But when I turned around to come back I was facing a stiff head wind! I pushed it so hard! And each time the wind picked up - I picked up my pace in response. ...

Okay, so now on to the mental part of running. This is my toughest challenge yet to be sure. I only got in 10.5 miles on Friday. There were lots of factors that caused limitations. I just ran and didn't calculate until I got home and was pretty disappointed really. I hope to run light this week. I think that was one problem Friday is that I put in longer miles and ran more days. The half is this coming Sunday and I'm having thoughts of ditching! Is that crazy or what? I know I can walk it and set a PR! And the main thing is not how well I do - but just that I finish it. If I crawl or roll across the finish line at midnight that's fine - I will have finished it...and that's what matters. Isn't this the same as life with faith? We just have to be finishers, not always come-in-firsters! We gotta finish what we started. For many it's too easy when things get tough or too challenging to just want to ditch it all and throw out our faith. Even though that's re...