Bad run

Today I had a horrible run! And I really don't know why. There was no reason for it to feel as it did, as far as I could see. Okay, I'd missed my Thursday run because I got my period, but that should make me feel well rested, not like puking my guts out or like laying down on the wayside.

So when I caught myself thinking 'Oh, this is going terrible!' I quickly made myself think: 'It's going really well, it's going really well.' But I don't think I believed me.

So after running 4 times for 10 minutes I just had to walk the final 10, something I really hate to do. It feels like cheating. And all the time I could feel my mobile burning a hole in my pocket, whispering: 'Why don't you call hubby to come and get you?' But since I could almost see my goal, the pancake house, I ploughed on.

After I had my coffee I felt a little bit better, so I decided to run home, and nót call hubby. This time I managed 3 times 10 minutes before I just had to stop and walk.

'Well at least you went the distance,' I told myself. Which I did: 16 kilometer, 8 kilometers per hour. That's not too bad.

So even though I had a terrible run, I still made it.

And the one good thing about such a bad run: the next run can only feel better.

Don't fight it, run with it

Part of Danny Dreyer's ChiRunning philosophy is: 'If it hurts, there's something to improve on how you're doing it.' It reminds me of breastfeeding advocates, saying the same thing: nursing isn't supposed to hurt, and if it does, there's a valuable lessen to be learnt!

I wonder if the same principle of pain equals opportunity to learn, applies to life in general. I suppose it does. Sometimes life hurts. Shit happens, as they say, and tears may fall. But when life hurts it's not necessarily because you're doing it wrong, it's just life being life. However, how múch it hurts dóes have something to do with you.

The harder you fight it, the harder your journey will be. So if life sucks big time, and you're hurting like crazy, just lean into it, like a runner leans into a steep hill. Listen to what it is telling you, and let it take you along on your journey.

So don't fight it, just run with it.

Mother and son run

The gym, that is the earth, never ceases to surprise me. It's just one of the many perks of running: you get to know your own environment in new and exciting ways. And today I discovered a new route!

It's a lovely route, along country roads and wooded areas, and there's no traffic or any urban activity. I had forgotten snow can be beautiful in my longing for Spring, but this morning I ran through pictures that were worthy of Christmas cards.

Normally I'm a bit hesitant to enjoy the lonely beauty of wooded areas, but this time I had my son Jan (13) with me on his bike. Together we ploughed our way through the snow, and I felt such joy, to be out running with my son beside me.

And at the end of this beautiful nature run, like the icing on a the cake, there's this beacon for those who would like to have cup of coffee: a big yellow M! So Jan and I had a coffee (me) and a hamburger + warm chocolate (Jan).

'Isn't life wonderful, on this Monday morning?' I mumbled.
And Jan nodded and took another bite out of his hamburger.

Isn't it great how well running and motherhood can be combined?!

Running made complicated

Running seems so easy: you put on some shoes and you run out the door. But you can make it complicated, if you want to.

So that's what the people at Asics did, and set about to create a woman's shoe that adjusts to your time of the month. It's called GEL-KAYANO 16.

The shoes consists of three layers: foam, air and plastic. When your arch is low (during ovulation) the foam is pushed into the air gap, and when your arch is high (during menstruation) the foams fills out.

In the meantime researchers at Harvard Univesity are saying it's best to run barefoot. That's not just easy, it's really cheap too.
The only thing you need is some calluses!

Then you can go out and buy a nice running skirt and have a Big Mac because you just saved yourself about 190 dollars.

Do you wanna be right or wounded?

As a runner I know my place on the streets. I run on the left side, so I can see oncoming traffic. And that's a good thing, especially in the morning when there are lots of kids riding their bikes to school, wearing iphones and looking really sleepy. Those kids really add a lot of spice to my morning runs. That rush of adrenaline: will he/she see me in time, of run me over?

But since I'm not really an adrenaline junkie I have timed my runs just so. I run when I know those kids are safely in school, and I've got the streets to myself. Or do I?! Because now I encounter these people who decided to take a nice walk. But not on the left side of the road, oh no, that would be adhering to the rules of traffic. Much better to walk on the right side, into upcoming runners.

Since I know I'm right, in running on the left side of the road, I absolutely refuse to budge. I stubbornly stay in the left lane. There's only one thing wrong with that: so do they! So in the end I kind of stumble even more to the left, spraining my ankles and what not, trying to avoid a full on collision.

And as I stumble along I grit my teeth in a mixture of annoyance and pain. Because I'ld rather be wounded then give up on being right.