Sunday, May 10, 2009

535?

What is 535?

535 is the number of miles that the FIRST hill in the Whiskey Flats trail run (5k) looked.

535 thousand miles is what it felt like.

535 times I wanted to stop.

535 million rocks in my path.

535 times I looked over my shoulder worried a mountain lion was going to attach itself to my face.

535 times I wished I had my mp3 player to distract me.

535 people along the path saying, "your almost there" (I hate that, I wasn't)

535 minutes that it felt like it took me to finish. (it didn't only 40 some)

535 uphills, I know I came down sometime or other but still can't figure out where.

535 thousand times I had wished I had trained appropriately for hills, sand and rocks, instead of semi flat.

535 times I thought about going back to kick the sign that said I was only 1 mile into it.

but it is also...

535 times I enjoyed how beautiful our valley is.

535 times I was grateful for the beautiful creek crossings, both for the neat log bridges and for the needed breather.

535 million times I was glad I did it, even though it was a lot tougher than I had expected.

535 times I decided I want to do these more often.

535 times I was grateful for Karrie for doing this with me.

Really 535 was just the number attached to my shirt.

1 comment:

Karrie said...

It WAS good. In many ways. It's all about finishing at the beginning- I don't know if I'll ever "compete." With myself, yes, but probably not with others. I like to be good at things, but right now I know I'm not training as hard/smart as others, and honestly, I don't think running is one of my talents. I've picked a triathlon to do, and some of my family is interested in doing it to- a few boy cousins. They are looking at it the same as we are: a goal for a certain level of fitness, just to finish. It's Sept. 09- on a Saturday over at the coast. Sprint distance.
One of the things I liked best about the run on Sat. was that it was harder to give up on myself with other people there. Okay, so part of the reason I didn't give up is because the trail was so narrow and I'd rather run to death than step off the trail and onto a snake... still, I think if we run socially once a month or so, it'll keep us on our toes.
Here's to not burning out and overtraining, but sticking with a plan that'll help us become more healthy (and maybe more toned in a swimsuit? Although, honestly I know I didn't get skinnier yesterday, but I felt stronger and more in shape. Mental, I know. Stronger, more in shape, and dead tired.) Cheers!