Success!

Run: (Easy, slow) Base Run

Distance: 5.65 Miles

Average Pace: (slower for training) 9:00 min/mi

Well, today was my first run attempting the "mind tricks" I spoke about last post. And the outcome was...?? GREAT! I took a new approach this morning, slow and steady. I really took this training run as a way to listen to my body. 

(GOD AWFUL photo but I had to capture my post run sweat glow. What can I say? I was pumped that I pushed through!) 

I began my morning with a big cup of strong coffee and some stretches. After throwing on some clothes, I head out the door with my running shoes on and a positive mindset (SO important). I started my first mile 15-20 seconds slower than my comfortable pace. This helped tremendously! I felt warmed up and comfortable. At mile two, I decided to head back into my "comfort zone". I ran at my typical pace here. I used some of the tricks I had learned from this article. I also made sure that I was really in-tune with my body. 

At one point near mile 2, I began feeling fatigued. I thought to myself, "Is this feeling pain or is this feeling tired?" After accessing that it was a feeling of tiredness, I thought about how on a scale from 1-10, where does my body feel right now? I scaled this feeling as a "2". After realizing my sore back and tired legs were at a uncomfortable scale of "2", I pushed through. I told myself that I can do this. This is me getting stronger. Make yourself proud. And I did! I also accessed my overall form at this time. From head to toe, I felt every part of my body and told it to relax (sounds weird but I learned this technique in yoga and it has always relaxed my muscles). I felt my shoulders drop, my posture improve, my fists loosening grip and my legs taking larger strides. I felt amazing.

Another technique I used to go along with listening to my body, was to forget about the time. I didn't want to care about my pace, this was about me rehearsing mentally for my race next month. I was able to shift my mindset of walking to instead, slowing my pace. I gotta tell ya guys, this truly improved my mental status and my ability to conserve energy. I felt like a new woman! It felt SO good. I eventually slowed my pace back down to 15 seconds slower than comfortable pace, a quarter mile before reaching the end of my run.

Moral of the story, listen to your body!!!! It's so important. So many people race to the finish line without allowing themselves to enjoy the ride. Running is such a learning experience for me. Everyday I learn something new about not only myself but the world around me. It's such a special part of my life. Allow yourself to enjoy the ride and allow yourself to feel e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g.

Today started off wonderfully AND I received great news at work. It was like the whole day was created by this morning run! I'm going to keep up the hard work and hope you do as well. Make yourself proud and get out and move tomorrow!