1. The sense of accomplishment I have after I finish. This week’s long run was 9 miles, and this coming weekend will be 10. Although I am not in double digits just yet, I still believe that 9 miles is 9 freaking miles. And I feel proud of myself when I finish because I did something good for my body, and for my mind!
Plus, climbing beastly hills don’t hurt that sense of accomplishment feeling either 🙂
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| Elevation chart from this past weekend’s LR |
2. Mental Clarity. I imagine this is true for most runners, but there is nothing quite like zoning out for an hour or two (or four or five in later months!) and focusing on absolutely nothing and everything all at the same time. I usually spend the first 20-30 minutes of my long run solving every single problem in my universe. Often, this include school and work but I usually roll into personal relationships and future plans. By the time I decide to turn on my iPod, I have literally worked out every kink in my world. And it feels fantastic!
3. Catching up on books and podcasts. First of all, let me clarify: no matter how busy I am, how swamped I am with school and work, I am never willing to give up my leisure reading. I always read at least one chapter before bed because otherwise, I literally cannot fall asleep. Having said that, my best friend Angel recently turned me on to the notion of listening to audiobooks while running, and I haven’t looked back!
Holy time passer! I had always been a music runner, but I realized pretty quickly that audiobooks completely engross me and the miles just fly by — and for me, that is saying a lot! Once I started with audiobooks, I easily transitioned into podcasts and have found a few that I seriously love. In fact, I find myself looking forward to my long run every week because I know it’s time to catch up on “my stories.” Does that make me lame? Maybe, but I’m not ashamed!
PS In case you’re curious, my fave podcasts are This American Life by NPR, the Jillian Michaels podcast, and most importantly, a show called Cocktails and Creampuffs. The last one is done by a few gay men and it is seriously hysterical. You know it’s funny when you’re 6 miles into a run, literally laughing OUT LOUD because the podcast is so funny!
PPS The Anne of Green Gables audiobook is only $3.95 on iTunes. I love this book and for dozens of hours of listening, I think that is a great deal!
4. I am finally seeing improvement! Like real, tangible improvement that I can track with numbers! For example, a few weeks back, I ran 5.7 miles in 64 minutes. Seriously, that is even slow for me at an 11:13 pace! However, this last 9 miler on Sunday felt fantastic and my pace was much better!
This run was a couple of miles longer with a massive hill in the middle and I still ran at a much faster pace. I like progress; I’ll take it!