Some days, you're the windshield...

I've been in a bit of an exercise funk for a week or so. Sick kids. Sinus trouble. Dropping tree limb. School registration (times three). I've been keeping track of my half hearted workouts , but haven't even been feeling inspired enough to plug them into my training log on the mac. I have been running, but not as much. Struggled to get under 12:00/mile. I'm never very fast, but YUCK. The stuffy head didn't allow for easy breathing in the almost 100 degree heat index, so I focused on small trips. Grocery rides, tandem rides with the kids. Not high mileage, but something.

I know. Whine, whine, whine.

This week, I'm on the upswing. Monday's run was okay. I'm a little faster than the last time I ran that particular route. About three minutes faster. Not bad.

Wednesday's bike ride was cut short by pop-up storm, not by exhaustion. The 12.5 miles I rode were at a 17+ mph pace. Even better.

It rained this afternoon, not long before my run. There were more storm cells on the horizon. I considered driving to the Y for a treadmill run. Rush hour traffic? Not high on my To Do list. As I started to tick off the reasons I couldn't/shouldn't climb in the car, something clicked. I switched to my older shoes, sprayed myself head to toe with bug repellent, and headed to the trails near my house. I took off at what felt like an easy pace. 8:00 running, 2:00 recovery.

Beep. Run. Beep. Walk.

No stress. No glancing at my HRM, looking for the next break. I negotiated tree roots, dangling briar and kudzu vines, leapt over muddy patches. Climbed through a couple of young trees which had partially fallen across the path. Kept going. The sound of my shoes hitting the graveled portions of the trail were in perfect time with the music. It was beautiful.

As I headed back for the car, I realized I could have managed an extra loop. Didn't want to push it. When I opened the truck door and reached for my water, I glanced at my HRM.

38:05

I had an average pace of 9:32, over four miles. Temps in the upper 80s, thick air, none of it mattered. It was a good day, a very good day. Today, I was not the bug.

I'm looking forward to more days like this.