Skip to main content

I Run to Feel Alive


Today is National Running Day. Guess what I did this morning? Cycling? Nope. Lifting? Nope. I bet you thought kickboxing right? Nope. Running? But of course! I actually sort of planned my running days this week just so I could participate this year.

I didn't get to run last year and didn't even know about it the year before. But running has become such an integral part of my life and who I am, that I couldn't miss this year. Basically, I run to feel alive. It calms me, it helps me work through life, it's often a reason to get out of bed. No matter how tough a run is, it makes you feel ... period.

My plan was to get in 5 miles (got in 5.5 actually). It was about 10 degrees warmer this morning and definitely more humid. That always makes for a tougher run. We decided to take a different route today. Well, it was really only a few streets over different, but still. The point is we took a different street. Sometimes that's good, sometimes not. I did realize this particular road has more of an incline than I ever realized.

Yesterday we had run relatively fast. She had also done weights that evening. So today we were both sort of feeling the after effects of yesterday's workouts. Couple that with humidity and you get a much slower run. Though, we really needed the slower run, tired or not. We have a tendency to just go all out all the time without ever really scaling it back unless we're forced to because of heat, humidity or injuries.

So, not the easiest run, not the worst run either. Always good conversation and a great way to start off the day - especially National Running Day!

In honor of this day, I thought it might be fun to do a little bit of a random/fact-ish type post. Mostly because I was thinking this would be the day to not say certain things to a runner. So, here's my list of What Not to Say to a Runner:
  • Running is bad for your knees. Research shows that running could actually protect you from future joint damage.
  • Why on earth do you run? Um, why do you breathe?
  • Did you win the race? Runners rarely win the races. We're usually there for fun. Only a handful are fast enough to win. And that's ok.
  • You already ran this week, why are you running again? Because I want to?
  • I hate running, absolutely hate it. That's fine. You don't have to love it, but you don't have to blatantly bash it either. I'm not demanding that you go run.
  • Did you go for a jog today? No, no I did not. I ran. I did not jog.
Anything you'd ad to this list? Or what is something you shouldn't say to a weight lifter or perhaps a crossfiitter (sorry if that's an incorrect term)?

It also happens to be Way to Go Wednesday so I wanted to give a couple of shout outs.

Kierston at Candy Fit for recently competing in the OPA Ontario Championship. This girl rocks!

Katie at Katie Moves for finishing her 2nd half marathon despite the hot hot hot temps.

Anyone you want to send a shout out to?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Love in Photos

In honor of Valentine's Day - Love in Photos Husband Family and Furbabies Friends Even if you're not a fan of Valentine's Day - I hope you have a wonderful day and remember the loves in your life.

Workout Wednesday - Body Blaster Tabata

Happy Hump Day! I wanted to thank everyone for their comments on yesterday's post: Be Kinder to Your Body. Calories are Not the Enemy . It sounds like it resonated with many of you. Today I wanted to share a new workout with you. I've been working on interval workouts for some of my clients. I try to give them the most bang for their buck (time). I know that in an ideal world, we would all have time to do longer workouts. There would never be scheduling conflicts, sick husbands or kids, or sick us. In reality, workouts need to be effective and efficient. And they don't have to be lengthy to be effective and efficient either. There's no need to spend hours in a gym to get in a good workout. Interval workouts like HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) or tabata, or even interval running are great ways to get in a fantastic workout in a short amount of time and have many benefits. You can read more about Tabata workouts  here . The benefits of this type of work

Piriformis Update & Grilled Veggie Salad

New Piriformis Exercises Today wasn't too terrible for a Monday. Of course, I did leave a little early. That always helps huh ;-) I had another round of physical therapy today. My PT has been really researching piriformis syndrome and found an interesting article that discusses the use of McKenzie Exercises - typically used for back pain. I have started adding in low back extensions (one of the exercises) but now have a whole new list of exercises to add into my workout rotations. But, if it helps, I'll do it. I also asked her about dry needling (thanks Sarena ), which is sort of similar to acupuncture, but is more about trigger point and intramuscular stimulation. And I'm glad I asked because the timing is uncanny. One of the doctor's in the clinic happens to be going to get certified this weekend. They both believe that I am a prime candidate for the procedure. So we'll see how that goes. Kind of scared because I hate hate hate needles. Have any of you tr