Mind games & Lady Marmalade

I am kind of piggy-backing on April's post. If it isn't an injury that plagues me from running, it's the mind games that will do it. I can usually come up with a half dozen of them before I've even gotten my running shoes on. Lately, I have had the recovery of my injured back, having to push the Beast with two not so eager running buddies, or even the thought of I just can't keep up so why bother on my mind. April sent a nice link to an article all about being able to run past your mental blocks. It really hit the nail on the head for me...and in turn lit a fire. I just needed to try and get out there. I needed to stop worrying about the mileage for once and maybe just try for time. The other day, I did just that. I knew the boys didn't really want to be cooped up in the Beast for 45 min to an hour, so I just went for 30 minutes. They gave me that much--and I repaid them with a few laps around the neighborhood track. By letting go of some of the stress of adding miles, I had a great run and an added bonus was playing chase around the track that also helped my mileage. And because I wasn't stressing over every little twinge or looking at my pace, etc. I felt GREAT afterwards!

Now fast forward to this morning...as I lay awake at 3am or so, all I kept thinking about was how on Earth am I going to get enough sleep to try and tackle a 5-miler in about 5 hours? The forecast was rather grim--lots of rain, cold, wind, possible thunderstorms & hail. In my mind, I had all valid excuses to just scrap the entire plan. Luckily, I got back to sleep and even slept in a little later than usual. It wasn't until the hubs asked me the daunting question, "Are you still going out to run?" I wanted to answer, 'No' sooooooo badly. Instead, I said, 'Yes. And I'll go as far as I can go before the weather turns nasty'. I kept in mind the article from earlier this week as I got ready. If I get to go the full 5 miles, great---if not, it's OK. Because in the end, I do NOT want to injure myself any more.

I proudly made it 2 miles and I have to say, felt DARN good! But, then I saw it...the dreaded hill. *sigh* Oh, and just as an added bonus, there's a pretty tough headwind. I hit my powersong button and made my way up...and up....and up. When that song wasn't enough, thank goodness, Lady Marmalade was. I suddenly had the biggest smile on my face and even though I was huffing & puffing, I had some big laughs, too. This song transported me back to many bachelorette parties and one very memorable karaoke performance at a family wedding. Once the song was done, I looked around and I had done it. I had conquered that ding-dang hill, the headwind, and on my way to completing 5 miles.

I am so proud of the long way I've come this week. I could've easily scrapped all plans of any runs, but I overcame them all. And knowing that I have done that makes the slightly scary & nervewrecking realization that this half marathon is very much around the corner, a little easier to swallow.