Making Strides

Well folks, today I completed my longest run to date - 14 miles. The first 11 miles were pretty easy, but the last 3 really took some grit to get through. I just kept telling myself that it was just a little bit farther. While I'm marginally daunted by the thought that I still need to muster up an additional 12.2 miles over what I completed today, it wasn't too many months ago when 7 miles seemed like a great feat. With this in mind, I know I'll get there.

As always, the game plan is to take it one day at a time and to take each run one mile at a time. When you breakdown any seemingly insurmountable obstacle into small parts, it's easier to stick with it. Another trick is when you feel yourself starting to mentally give in, just try to get to the next light post or street light. Baby steps - they work! And when they don't, you just have to dig deep to find out what you're made of. If you can get past those moments of self double, I promise that you'll come out on the other side.

I'm sure I posted it here before, but one of my favorite quotes from Moliere is this:

"The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it."

As I sit here and take an assessment of how I feel, I don't think that I'm doing too bad, all things considered. I have my full lung capacity back and it's amazing what a difference that makes. I've taken breathing easily for granted my whole life, but I can tell you that it's no fun to feel like you're going to fall over or pass out with every stride. My muscles feel a little fatigued, but still functional. Almost all of the pain that I have is skeletal, primarily in my feet and ankles. I did go ahead and schedule a massage for tomorrow because I have a feeling that getting out of bed tomorrow morning is going to be a delicate and painful process. You want to know a secret? I love that feeling. I love knowing that I've pushed my body to the limit and it didn't let me down. I love knowing that it's capable and strong and dependable. When I finish my runs, I always say a heartfelt thanks to my legs for carrying me the distance, even though I'm pretty sure it's against their will.