Day 57 (week 9) - What were we thinking?

It's hard to believe that, just over eight weeks ago, I agreed to start this seemingly crazy program. So much has changed in the intervening weeks that I almost don't remember what it was like when I started. I do remember it being hard, very hard, and I do remember things like being dreadfully out of breath after about half of the intervals. Yet here I am after running a little more than the required 30 minutes this morning (my playlist was 31 minutes long). When I finished, I was tired, but not out of breath or ready for a nap. In fact, by the time I got back to our car, at the end of our cool-down walk, I just might have been able to go out for another little bit of running!

What can I say about today's run? It started like so many of the others, feeling some resistance from my body, and dealing with my mind which was thinking about how comfortable the old bucket seats in the Tracer were. My knee felt fine, I found my stride fairly early, and I stayed close enough to Mrs. F that I didn't feel like she was getting away from me. When we got to the far end of the trail, where I would normally turn around, my body protested momentarily as I continued past the road. It full well knew that we normally turned around there, but since it was feeling pretty good overall, it capitulated and came along.

It was a bit eerie running that next segment. Between the trees which still held leaves, the cloud cover, and the fact that it was still well before dawn, the path ahead was dark and neary indistinguishable from the remaining night. Mrs. F pulled a bit ahead of me here, as I tried to gauge when I should turn around. Listening for a cue on my playlit to help me estimate time, I picked a stand of trees that stood against the skyline where the trees thinned to brush on my right. As I reached it, I felt I still had some time, so I picked the next landmark on the skyline and kept running. Upon reaching it, I called out to Mrs. F, so she would know I was turning around. I was close enough that she heard me clearly, and I heard her acknowledge my statement.

With that, I began running back. It was the segment of trail we used during our first couple of weeks. Perhaps my body remembered, because when I got to the road again, there was that same sense of "Are we done yet?" that I've experienced before. Yet, in my mind, I was excited. I had already covered extra ground, though I could not be sure how much, but I was still running. It was about then that I really found my stride and experienced a sense of strength and relaxation. I was running, and it didn't bother me. In fact, I was enjoying it--my pace, seeing the city over the water, seeing the airport spotlight circling on the clouds. It was something I would never have imagined possible in any exercise, much less running.

So, on I ran. The good feeling did not last forever, however, and I felt the fatigue come on me, along with new murmurings of my body to slow down. Knowing that slowing seemed to make me want to slow all the more, I tried the opposite--I pushed a little harder. When I increased my pace, ever so slightly, I found that things were better. As the feelings came on again and again I slowed, I did it again. Soon, I was in my final song, one that I really enjoy, and I picked up my pace again. The end of the song neared and I pushed into a spring. The song ended, but I did not stop. I sprinted through the finish line I envisioned, before turning to walk back toward Mrs. F.

Today, she was not as far behind me, though she had again covered more trail than I (including some shorter double-backs to me on our way out). When I saw her, I called out to her, and I saw her pushing to finish strong. She did, and that meant she ran at least a minute more than did I.

I could never have imagined such a run. I find that my fears about the next day's workouts are largely gone now, since I already know I can run for the alltotted time. The next few weeks, after this program ends, will be a challenge, but I believe I'm ready for them, and I'm looking forward to completing my first 5k race in November.

During those early days, and even during some in the middle, I used to ask myself "What were we thinking?" when we agreed to start this program. Well, I'm just glad we endeavored to persevere, regardless of what we were thinking at the onset, or while on the trail.