What a Little Determination Will Do

I mentioned on the Weekly Wrap on Sunday that my plan for Monday was to come right home from work and call Icon Fitness about my iFit module. I needed to call right away because I knew I would be on hold for a majority of the evening before speaking to someone.  But when I got in my car to come home and saw the outside temperature was 64 degrees, I told myself that I was NOT going to let Icon Fitness hold me hostage today.  They have already monopolized so much of my time already this year. I needed to do some errands and of course why not soak up this sun and go for a run!

Can you tell I am wearing my flip belt under my shirt?

I took my run to the trail since I had to run errands near there.  I wore my RunDisney shirt because all this talk about Princess Half Marathon weekend this weekend has made me excited to plan my next Disney vacation!

I hadn't quite committed on how many miles I was going to run, but I knew I was going to run further than my usual 3 miles that I do during the week.  

I did a mile on the trail and then deviated off the trail (but still stayed on the adjoining sidewalk) and looped around the shopping center and fitness center. That gave me 2 miles. I figured all I had to do was just run back to where I started and I'd have 4 miles in already!  

By mile 4 I was feeling pretty good so decided to just continue on the trail a half mile more (and turn around a half mile) for a total of 5 miles.   Also by mile 4 my ipod battery went dead. I considered just playing music on my phone but remembered that I had to call icon Fitness when I got home and needed a full battery for that because who knows how long I would be on hold!  So I continued to run with no music and ya know what? It didn't suck.  By mile 4.5 I could feel a blister forming on my toe.  The funny thing is, I often get a blister on the side of one of my inside toes. I could understand blisters forming on the outsides toes from possibly rubbing on the side of the shoe, but the inside toes? I just don't understand what that comes from.  So anyway, after feeling a blister, and having no music, I still decided that ya, know what, I could run one more mile. I might as well do 6 miles since it is so nice out.

And I not only did 6 miles, I completed 6.2.  I Figured I need to ramp it up if I was going to be running a 10K next month.  I know it's only 6.2 miles but I was pretty darn proud of that. So here's the thing, it's not that I can't run far (I've run a marathon or two), it's just running is really time consuming. It's hard when you have a full time job, errands to take care of, and other interest beyond running.  So yea, runs beyond 3 or 4 miles just don't usually happen during the week.

So I was feeling pretty good after my run but that came to a halt when I went to the vet's office to pick up Baylee's food.  I need to tell you a little back story here. About a year ago the vet's office decided to put these LED candles on the counter and there was a little sign that read something like this If these candles are lit, someone is saying good-bye to their pet.  I buy Baylee's pills and food at their office so I visit more than normal. There were a few time I left that office with tears in my eyes because I had seen those candles lit.  I understand that they want people that come in to be mindful and respectful that there are pet owners there who are sad. I get it. But this was also working on my nerves each time I went in and finally I had to say something to the lady at the front desk about how sad it is to see those candles. The vet's office is not a happy place for me to be to begin with but than having a reminder of those candles makes it worse (I can imagine other people may feel the same way).  Well, when I returned, those candles were still on the counter.

Okay, back to Monday's visit. I was paying for my food and I noticed those candles were no longer on the counter. However, as I was completing my transaction, I man leaned over the counter and in a somber voice tells the assistant that his dog was in the car and wasn't able to get up, but she was ready.   I knew right away what he was talking about and I just wanted to get out of there ASAP before I broke down.  The assistant helped me carry my food out to my car  and I stayed focused only on my car and tried not to look at my surroundings because I did NOT want to have that dog in my vision. I put the food in the trunk and as I got into my car, I accidentally caught a glimpse of what I  thought was a blond dog head through the window in the car beside me.  I thought it may have been a retriever but I certainly did not want to look again.  I needed to get out of there.  I was successful at leaving emotionless (which is a good thing).

Okay, back to running. My February runs have been pretty good so far, with this being the best one all month. We have two more days this week and warm weather ahead so perhaps I'll get in another one that even surpasses this one. -M


If you read all this, thank you. I know it was long.

What do you make of the blister situation? What's your opinion on the candles?

We will be linking up with the gals from TOTR.