Whew! It's been a crazy few days but I think I'm over another major hurdle. I shared last week about my episode and now that's it is behind me and I can think more clearly I think I have come to some conclusions. First, my last 3 runs have been awesome! And I had a great time last night at taekwondo. No chest pains, no dizziness and even though I took it easy I had no difficulties at all. Well, except the fact that this fat old lady got her big toe caught in the pant leg of her uniform and jerked a toe out. Why can't I have normal injuries or at least noble ones? lol I've been spreading out my runs and it seems to be helping. I only run two days in a row. Overall my new strategies seem to be working but it's all new. I'm committed to the journey at this point and determined to be fit in the midst of personal struggles and physical roadblocks. I'm a thinker and a problem solver. Of course this leads to overthinking most of the time. But over the...

Runners know what an important role the diet plays in fueling the run. For me, it really is the pasta dinner the night before. You kind of have to experiment with a few things to find out what works for your body. And we all know how rough finding out what the no-no's are! That can mess up a really good run! (lol- runners know what I am talking about!) But I don't think that what we eat is the guts of the matter. What really fuels the run is found when you top that huge hill that was just taken in stride, or you shave a few seconds off a PR, or you get that medal in your age group at a race...all summed up in one word: success. That's really the "stuff" behind why we continue. Think about how discouraging it would be to run at the same pace every single day and never be able to get any faster ever - or if the same hill kicks you in the butt every day and you never conquer it...discouraging to say the least. I think this is true in many aspects of our live...

It's funny as I am finishing up this week that I took totally off from running, I am so anticipating tomorrow morning's run! I can't wait! I think my body has recuperated enough now that it is just now realizing I actually ran a half marathon! While I was taking the trash out to the dumpster I was thinking about tomorrow's run...and my mind went to my last race and then the half marathon that I ran a couple weeks ago. I think I actually started walking different - just thinking about having run a half marathon. That's when I had the thought: I think I'm a runner! I still want to do a full marathon later - and eventually a full marathon. Then I want to do a Warrior Dash - those look like so much fun! And I'd like to give trial running a shot too...but all of that was not even possible two years ago when I first started training for the 5K! It's funny how when we take on a new adventure we can barely take on the day...but then we start stretching out...

I run for a lot of different reasons, like most runners. One of the benefits is that I am out of the house and I get to breathe fresh air for about an hour. I also can clear my mind. It helps me deal with the rest of the day when I can get my mind clear. This morning I was running just a little faster than "slow" gear when the unthinkable happened. A younger woman came up behind me and passed me! My thoughts became clouded with tons of questions! I immediately felt so unproductive and like I was failing! My steps quickened as I realized another runner was going the same direction only faster. It doesn't matter at all that I am probably 20 years her senior...it's unthinkable. I know I'm slow but what the...? I began to reason it all out so I could find a calmer way to run! I know I am older, perhaps even less experienced. But the I realized I am not competing with her - I compete only against myself. This has been one of my running mantras from the beginning....