Monday 4 April 2011

Reuniting with my Inner Runner

Yesterday it finally happened!!! It was late afternoon, the sun was shining and mother nature was giving another tease that spring might actually appear. I was enjoying my new ride heading off to work when out of the corner of my eye I saw it..... a runner! Then another one and another one..... when yes it finally happened. That flutter of envy!! If your a runner you know the one I am referring to. Where you become mesmerized for a fleeting moment and you are there with that runner. Your body, your mind wants to be there on the road, trail whatever it may be. It has been a very long time since I have felt that flutter in my soul. Never one to deny myself of what I truly desire today became the day that the runners were laced, the I pod loaded and lululemon graced  me with her glory to take on the streets and parkways of Lethbridge. Then reality..... I have not ran on pavement other than a short "Girls want to go fast" moment. My line on the treadmill "this is boring" so I jump on my spin bike. Well today let me know it wasn't boring it was hard! So much for the theory- "3K! Whats the point in even tying up my laces?!" as I ran 5K wishing I was only running 3K. As I am plodding along thinking this will be one of the longest 5K's of my life I am quickly reminded of what the beginning stages of running felt like. I originally decided to try running as I believed it was something I honestly was not going to be able to do. Well surprise when you commit to something anything is possible. When I started a minute was torture..... well today it took 10 mins before I was really whiny. When I started running the concept of a negative split was uh?! you just go all out and hope that you can finish strong. Well today a true negative split the first half sucked! yep sucked! By the halfway mark my body started to remember what it was suppose to do. Lo and behold by the end the old runner in me was taking over. At no point am I going to say this was an easy run and I spent a lot of the run hoping to not run into another a runner as that would be embarrassing. Actually it might sound like this- "S***T do you think they saw me take a walk break?!"  Although I have a way to go before I am back to being the runner I was the love what you hate runner still resides inside me. Straight, flat and a break from the wind my attitude "this is okay!" Then a hill "Oh yeah baby!!" Then a hill and wind "Hell yeah I was made for this crap"

My PR for a 5K sub 24 mins. Today's comeback 5K 32 mins and 42 secs. Thank goodness there was not a lot of runners out there and for the one's who were. Thank you for running in the opposite direction :-)