Walk On

Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.--John Wooden

It's not the wanting to, it's the having to - My Mom

I've been a good girl and have been getting in lots of walking on an almost daily basis. I know it's good exercise, it's free and it's effective BUT...I'm bored with it. I take my Big Baby with me and it is our bonding time but that is the best part of it. It feels slow and it doesn't ignite a spark in me.  If walking were a man, to quote my friend Y, there would be no "ga-ga-goo-goo" feeling.  

I don't feel that burn in my lungs and legs like I did when I was running. I miss that feeling. I know that at my present weight, the safest and most logical thing for me to do is walk. But, damn it, I wanna run!  The sadness I felt about not running has turned to frustration which is slowly morphing into anger.  Anger with myself for getting out of shape and allowing distance to grow between me and the sport I love.  Of course, I can get back into running shape with continued good nutrition and consistent exercise but I'm impatient.  Trust me - I get the whole concept of walking before I can run but I'm human and it bugs the crap out of me.  I want it now (stamping of the foot).

This path reminds me that in running, just as in life, we all have to do things at one point or another that we don't always want to do.  Those things are usually in our best interest and have a purpose behind them but they still stink.  I remember as a kid, there would be things I was asked to do but didn't want to do and my Mom would always say "it's not the wanting to, it's the having to".  And she was absolutely right.  I don't WANT to walk but I have to....for now.  If walking means that I will eventually get back to running, I suppose I can continue to tolerate it....for now.  Anything to get back to my one and only true love...running.

Happy Trails,

Valeka

Patience

Have patience with all things but first of all, with yourself - Saint Francis de Sales

Have patience.  All things are difficult before they become easy - Saadi 

Now that reality has set in and I realize I have signed up for a race, my fun REALLY begins.  I can get very single-minded when it comes to training.  I focus so much on running that I forget that I need to wash dishes, do laundry, put gas in my car and, every once in a while, eat.  I do enjoy the months before a race and everything that is involved like forming a training plan, mapping new routes so that I can include some challenges (especially hills), tracking mileage and creating running schedules.  For lots of people, that part is pretty tedious but I relish it.  I view it as a good opportunity to learn what works for me and what doesn't when it comes to training.  Sure, I could get a training plan from a book or pay someone to do it for me but part of me feels like the victories and failures become more meaningful if I do all of the preparation from inception to completion.  It's kinda like building a garden - you plan it out, enrich the soil, plant the seeds, care for them and enjoy the wonderful things the garden yields for you.  It's very gratifying but requires patience.

The wogging I've been doing is giving me a good foundation to start my training work outs.  I love how running 3 miles seems strenuous at the beginning of the program and by the time race day arrives, those same 3 miles feel more like a warm up.  Our bodies are pretty amazing when you really stop and think about it.  A person can go from being a couch potato to marathoner in a year!  No, really, it can be done with patience, persistence and consistency.  Patience really is key.  I think back on how many times I have given up on things or tossed them aside because I didn't have the patience to see them through to fruition.  There were times that I stopped running because it was taking me too long to get under the 10-minute mile mark and I just didn't want to wait any longer.  How silly was THAT?  In hindsight, I should have toughed it out and kept on working at it instead of giving up.  Who knows what the outcome could have been!  So this time around, I have made a commitment to myself to be patient and to not put that sort of pressure on myself.  My body will let me know when it is ready to do what it needs to do and I will be wise enough to listen.  Anything worth gaining is worth waiting for and gaining a healthy, fit body is worth the wait.  My hope is that my new found patience will trickle over into other aspects of my life as well (hey, it CAN happen!). 

Think about the things in your life that you lose patience with because they are/were taking too long to achieve.  Let your passion for whatever it is you love or want to achieve breed patience.  Take a deep breath and keep moving in the direction your heart tells you is best for you.  The results will be worth it.

Happy Trails,
Valeka    

Twiddling My Thumbs

I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end. - Margaret Thatcher

This is torture.  I have no patience when it comes to getting over an illness or injury.  That's probably why it takes me LONGER to get over cooties and heal - I get impatient when I can't work out and start going full force even though my body isn't ready for it.  I know I said I was going to do some "gentle exercise" in the interim but I'm not feeling it.  My brain keeps saying "RUN NOW!" but my body is asking me to take it easy and do some yoga.  I have been out for a couple of walks but it's not nearly as satisfying for me especially when I see others out running.  And runners are EVERYWHERE - on my drive to work, when I head out for lunch, when I leave work, when I run errands.  I almost feel like I am being mocked ("hee-hee, we can run and you can't, hee-hee").  Hopefully this cough and congestion will go away so I can return to my routine.  I keep trying to banish it by raising my fist and saying "I cast thee out" but it's not working.  In the meantime, I will have to force myself to be patient.  But if this isn't gone by Monday, I am running.