During my 5-miler yesterday, I remembered a very important piece of advice I once got from my spin instructor a couple years ago. “Sometimes, you just don’t have enough fuel in the tank.” When that happens, she said, you should go home and have a glass of orange juice to bring your blood sugar back up.
And more importantly, you should be kind to yourself.
My run yesterday came at the end of a wonderful weekend away with friends. We ate, we drank, we ate some more. Including homemade peanut butter chocolate chip cookies AND Rice Krispy treats. We saw the fall colors, we marveled at the mighty Mississippi River, we didn’t take naps. A couple of us walked up Rustic Road, one of the most beautiful – and nearly one of the steepest – paths I’ve ever traversed.
There was a part of me that knew I was going to run out of steam before I even left the driveway. But, the important part is that I left the driveway anyway. And started down the block. And kept going past the familiar 1-mile mark. And the comfort of the 2-mile mark. Until I sensed I was at 2.5 miles.
Thank the Lord, it was the turn-around point at last.
As I started back home, I thought of what it felt like to finish my first half marathon. About how far I’ve come in life since then. And how not every run can be the best run ever. Just like some days at work will feel mediocre. Sometimes, my lover and I will just have average days together – or God forbid, a fight.
Life is like that Rustic Road I walked up the other morning – comprised of both challenges and beauty. And full of reasons to keep going, even if there’s not much fuel in the tank at the moment.
Unscripted 