The Bright Side

“Happiness is simply a habit of looking on the brighter side of everything.” 

~ Richelle E. Goodrich

Mondays are generally rough for many of us.  For me, they are particularly challenging because I tend to be coming off a rest day and gearing up for a long run.  Since I'm training for a fall race, my long runs have been steadily creeping into the 15+ miles category.  I trained for my last few marathons with my running partner (and dear friend), KH.  We always did our long runs together which made them significantly more bearable.  Much to my dismay, our summer schedules don't mesh and we are not able to train together, so I am doing most of these long runs on my own (shout out to LT, who ran 2 of them with me this month).  I realize that I choose to race and therefore I am choosing to train and thus I am choosing to do the long runs, but on Monday morning, it doesn't feel like I'm choosing to do anything but put myself through torture for multiple hours.  On Tuesdays, I have a recovery day which is typically a 5-6 mile easy run (no watch).  Compared to the long run, it is truly delightful.  As I trotted along yesterday, I made a point to think about the bright side of my run.  My hope was that the next time I had a Monday long run looming around the corner, I would remember how good the Tuesday recovery run can be and it would be easier to power through.  I know, it's a long shot.  But, I have several more weeks of training ahead of me and I am working with whatever I've got to make it a positive experience all the way through.  Turns out it's easy to look at the bright side after a long run. 

THE BRIGHT SIDE OF TUESDAY'S RUN: TOP 10 THINGS

1. It's 70 degrees and there is no humidity. NONE.  This has seriously got to be the best day for running that we've had all summer.
2. Man, I am LOVING these new kicks.  My feet are so much happier.  And I feel really fast.

I'm sorry...but, how cool are these?

3. This lack of humidity means I will be able to get a brush through my hair after my run. How nice.
4. Wow, I will have almost 2 more hours than I did yesterday to get stuff done today. That's huge.
5. And, I will be able to get stuff done without hobbling around and/or feeling like I need to sit every 30 minutes on account of having run 16 miles.  
6. Oooh, tomorrow is cross train day.  Yoga?  Spinning?  So many good choices.
7. I am not the least bit thirsty and if I do get parched I am so close to home it won't matter.  No worries there.
8. This new song by TV on the Radio is insane.  I'd say it's worth repeating. Multiple times.  It's definitely making me run faster.
9. I gotta say, running 6 miles after 16 is a serious walk in the park.
10. Wait...I'm done?  Yea.  I'm done.  That was quick.

I realize I won't be able to fall back on all of these same items next week.  My shoes will no longer be new and who knows what the weather will be doing.  But, I've still got to tackle the long run on Monday, so the Tuesday run will, once again, be a welcome change, especially now that I know how good it can be.

Listen to this:
MERCY - TV on the Radio