I know you’re probably tired of reading about my running endeavors but I can’t help it. I am mildly obsessed. And I always have been. It just turns out that losing weight and running are my top priorities right now so my obsession is even worse than it normally is. Knowing how annoying my obsession is, I will keep this post brief.
When I started running, I was attached to my treadmill. I loathed running outside. I was actually terrified that I would run too far away and not be able to run home. I was scared that I would have to walk back and be too far to accomplish anything. But since the weather was so nice this spring and summer while I was pregnant, and while I would drive to and from places and became jealous of all the other runners who weren’t pregnant, I decided that once I was back in the game I would begin running outdoors until the weather turned. Well, friends, I have stuck to that promise.
My first day back, I started out on the treadmill. But I somehow got really bored within five minutes and decided I would give it a whirl. So a whirl it was given. I ran two miles outside-ish? I don’t recall the exact number. But it felt amazing. Fresh air, blue skies, loud music. Perfection. I have run outside every run since then. Except this morning.
On Tuesday I did a long run (four miles) and on Wednesday evening, after a full day of standing up all day preparing for Rosh Hashanah (Happy New Year to all my Jew friends!), I felt as if my right foot had a stress fracture. It actually still kind of feels like it. Anyways, so this morning I was planning on 3 miles. I decided I would give my body a break and run on the treadmill.
I reluctantly got on, ran for about 10 minutes or so, and decided I couldn’t do it. My pace was all out of whack, I couldn’t find a good song to zone out to, and I was sweating bullets with no cool breeze. Not that there has been a cool breeze here lately anyway, but a warm breeze is better than no breeze at all.
I gave up on the treadmill. I threw up my hands and said, “Forget it! I’m out!” And out I went. I finished my run this morning on the neighborhood pavement (asphalt, actually — I avoided sidewalks like the plague) and ended up at a total of 3.14 miles. Not too shabby. My foot still kind of hurts but I’ll attribute that to my challah-making endeavor yesterday. More on that in another post.
So, friends, for all of you treadmill runners out there who are afraid of getting “stuck” too far from home, map out your route for your normal mileage before you go. Then you are sure to not actually get stuck too far from home. And to all of you treadmill haters, now I get it. The treadmill is nicknamed the dreadmill for a reason.
Happy running!
