The only person stopping you... is YOU

Today I went from feeling like shit to setting a new personal record.

How? Well...

For starters - I slept terribly last night. The worst sleep I've had in a very long time. It was a combination of feeling sick to my stomach + chills (I think I ate some bad food) and really bad girly cramps. I woke up much later than I would have liked to and in a pretty grumpy mood to boot. I downed a few pills to help with the pain, did my morning routine, and pretty much resigned myself to not running today. But after an hour or so I started feeling better and thought "Wait, why can't I run today? What exactly is stopping me?" So I went out and did it. By the time I actually got out there I was feeling pretty good. It was an unusually windy 50 degree day...and running into the wind does royally suck, but I felt good. In fact I felt great in comparison to the morning runs I did last week, where my legs literally felt like lead. A daytime weekend run is so carefree compared to the mornings!

Today's run was - 3.50 miles in 34:06 - a 9:44 pace! 

This is huge - my first under 10 minute pace! I have been stuck in what I like to call the "terrible tens" of running, because no matter what I did I could not get under 10 minutes. Today I ran my ASS off - the home stretch of this run was an absolute burnout. I kept telling myself I could NOT let that watch hit 35:00. I felt so good after this run.

Next up... 9:00!
My best EVER time is 9:30. I think it was from 7th or 8th grade. And I'll beat it at 26 years old, and be in the best shape of my life.


Here is what I have learned this week

I think I need to try harder in the mornings. I think where alot of my problems lie is in my head. I tell myself I'm tired, I can't do it, etc. Yes, it does feel 10x more difficult to move my arms and legs at 6am, but alot of this is mental. Exercise is a mental game. You complain, tell yourself you should quit, etc. But really if you just push a *little* harder, you CAN do it. This week I've learned I need to get past the mental block - don't listen to the evil little voice in my head that is telling me I need to stop or rest. The voice that tells me "I've done enough". Don't listen to its lies!!!! It's myself making excuses. Half the time I don't even realize I'm doing it. I have to be aware of my mind - it tries to hold me back.

Today - when that little voice popped into my head, I didn't listen. I kept going. I pushed myself hard. And I claimed victory.



Side note - I signed up for my next 5k
Dog Gone Cold 5k
I'll most likely sign up for another one that's taking place on the prior weekend. Why not, right?