Sober Yoga

We took a yoga class last week, free for US Veterans.  It was fun.  The instructor was great.  It was relaxing and challenging and all positive energy.  When the instructor had asked if we'd ever taken a yoga class before, I said no.

It wasn't until towards the end of the class when she told us to scoot up to the wall, laying on our backs facing the wall with our butts touching the wall and our legs and feet straight up alongside the wall....that I started giggling out loud.

I giggled remembering the drunk yoga I'd done with a friend at her house.  Her and her girlfriends had a yoga session once when I was visiting from out of town.  My girlfriend and I were situated next to each other on the floor and had been drinking wine or martinis, I don't remember which, or both.  And more than the other ladies.  When we were doing the butts up against the wall thing, laying side by side, we were giggling and got chastised from the instructor.

So I'd forgotten I'd taken a yoga class before, informal and drunkenly so.

Pushing out the Mileage

I did another long run, adding perhaps, another mile.  The farmland in the foothills of the Appalachians was beautiful.

I spent the time thinking about setting up the informal ultra run on the C&O Canal Towpath, maybe in May, with two male friends who may try for a 50 miler while I do 35.

We hiked about 12 miles on the Appalachian Trail too.

White flashes from the AT.  This one says turn around.  And go under the bridge we just walked across.

So we were outrunning our forks.

Then we went into Baltimore and had pizza.

Embrace the Suck

I went out for three miles and ended up feeling good and pushing on for about seven or eight.

When I first came outside with my husband, I was in that mood of not really feeling like running but knowing I should.  The snow had melted the day before when it was 60 degrees.  There were still remnants of ice here and there, in shady spots and where it had gotten packed down from walking.  But the highways were clear.  I'd rather trail run, but hey, the trails would be all mushy with the melted snow and lots of rain.

We were dressed appropriately, of course, for a good run.  I had on long running pants and a good winter Under Armor shirt, with my Ragnar Relay hoodie over that.  I had cheap little gloves that roll up into a tiny golf ball shape (love them) and a warm headband.

Dave forgot something just as we came out of the house so I stood outside waiting.  Yikes!  The wind came at me.  Ohhhhhhh.....geez.  And I was standing in the shade so I moved out into the sunshine.  A bit better.

As we started to run I felt a little cold with the wind hitting us broadside, but I knew that it was just about right because as my body heated up I'd be fine.

After about two miles out (straight out and back route), Dave said he was turning around to go back and do the exercycle in the basement.  I felt good and wanted to keep going, thinking just another five minutes out and I'd turn around.

But I really began to enjoy it.  Even though my knees were talking to me now and then, and my left foot was creaking and croaking out comments here and there - I just slowed down a tad and made them all happy again.

And I thought about how I'd embraced the suck.  I thought about my mindset coming out of the house - a bit of dread, a have-to-do-chore of running and getting in shape.  I know that mindset is not the right one.  The mindset that came over me while running, like coming out of a fog, was the beauty of being outdoors, of the simple act of being able to use my body to move about this earth, to be able to breath in and out and to look about me at the sights, the rolling farm land, the cows, horses and sheep that stood in the fields watching me.

I realized I'd embraced the suck once again.  And it no longer sucks.  It is magic.   

Signed up for Another Marathon!

Dave and I will run the Erie Marathon on September 19th, near Lake Erie, Pennsylvania.  Woo hoo!! We are going to run with our good friend and his adult son.

But now we need to be able to get out and run.  I've been doing sets of 20 pushups here and there.  After two and a half sets a few days ago, my back was sore, so I "backed off" for a couple days.  I got on it again yesterday.

In the meantime, I am looking up recipes for carrot cake for my daughter-in-law.  We missed her birthday when we were in Iowa so I am going to make something nice.  We also missed our son's birthday.  He voted for carrot cake since he knows his wife likes it, but I know he'd like something chocolatey or cheesecakey so I will make something else fun on the lips for him.

By the way, this is the son who said, "You can't out run your fork."  Smiling.