Saturday, April 21, 2012

Great Day Today But Regret Sometimes Will Linger

The morning started with a great run with the people down at Fleet Feet in the Marina. I almost didn't go as I had planned. The noisy party neighbors across the street, too much coffee with a late dinner was working against me for getting a good night's sleep. I got maybe two hours and didn't quite have the enthusiasm when I got up but, I made myself go anyway. So glad I did. I met up just in time for the run out from the store. I met "Manny" who was really a nice guy and easy to talk to. We talked for awhile and soon I was comfortable and ready to run. It was quite a group that showed up, mixed ages and skill levels.
From the start  the pace was a wee bit more than what's been normal for me and I was just bordering on the high aerobic and red zone level according to my Garmin 305. The legs felt great so I stayed with the front of the pack. We ran along the water to just shy of the bridge and then turned back and went through a few nooks and crannies that I had not yet explored. Around mile 5 and 6 the pace picked up and we were getting around the 8 minutes per mile mark. I had warmed up a bit and felt strong enough to hang with it.
The run went by very fast and we ended up doing just shy of 6 miles.
Back at the store we hung out chatting and I was really happy I had done the run and I could see doing this weekly and I'm quite positive It will improve my speed over time.
Unfortunately, no pictures. I was to caught up in conversation and keeping up with the group.


I've got to get back to taking my camera with me more often. I have the new Droid Bionic which has a fantastic camera on board at 8megapixels. The problem is setting up the shot on the fly. To much manual process to get it out set up and shoot especially while in and active mode.
A Camera is just out of pocket, turn on focus and shoot. Running is considerably more difficult for photography than biking. There's so much more bouncing and steadying of the camera involved. A lot of the time when running alone I have my headphones plugged in to the phone for music so, it becomes even more complex to shoot. The camera is a bit heavy and along with the phone tends to bounce around in the pockets and is a bit annoying.


I was just thinking today how jazzed I've become about running. It's such a fresh novelty. I thought back a little to figure out when the seed was planted. I had had some bad experiences with running when I was younger and not swayed in that direction often. I played a lot of contact sports and I'm now thinking I would have been a lot better off not participating. I've suffered many injuries that still bother me now.


Since acquiring my three dogs, bouncing around with different companies and moving a few times over a four year period, my job has become way too time consuming and I just don't have the many hours that are needed to ride like I did before.


I had signed up for 24 hour fitness a couple of years ago but, last Fall I started to get very bored and sick of the lug-heads that permeate the exercise areas. The good machines were few and mostly broken and with my hours was only able to workout during the busiest times.


I had just finished reading a book called: Unbroken, a story of a famous runner who becomes a prisoner of war during WWII. He staves of insurmountable personal tragedy pain and finally addiction then finally redemption.
I remember running the treadmill and thinking...I could do a marathon!...That was all I needed and here I am today. I began training in earnest on January 1st of this year. four months in I've read countless running books, run about 600 miles and I'm quite invested now.


Today was a beautiful day in the city. I had time to take my dogs to the park to chase other dogs and the returned home satisfied and ready to nap. It's was a bit hot for them but we made it through the day.
Tonight I felt like going off the good food and headed to our favorite restaurant for a good old cheeseburger and fries. Add 5 pieces of coconut cake to that and yes I've fallen off my diet today...


By the way, I was just thinking about how unsatisfying my job has become. I wish I had buckled down early in life and found my calling. If I had it to do over again, I would have become a Veterinarian or a  professional athlete.
I feel like I've wasted a lifetime trying to make it at the things that really didn't mean that much to me.


Oh well...at least I can try to get a little taste of what I want to do. I'm not that broken down yet and I'm sure I have a little more time yet.

No comments: