I haven't been able to write as often as I'd like lately, which can be attributed to 1) a flurry of Fancy orders to complete before the end of the school year, 2) playoff hockey, and 3) it's just too damn hot in the room over the garage where my desktop computer is (no laptop, blogging on iPad is less than ideal). I had started a typical post a few nights ago and never got to finish, but recent events have prompted me to take this one in a different direction. I'm now on Day 3 of trying to finish this post.
I posted on Facebook earlier this week that the local news has been nuts lately. The national news has been disturbing also, but when the news in your own backyard is filled with crazy - shootings, stabbings, an elderly women being beaten to death in her own home, a woman running someone down with her car while her kids roamed free in the backseat, some dude assaulting someone then setting himself on fire - it's more than a little unsettling. Hitting even closer to home are the recent reports of female runners being stalked, and in some cases chased, by a man or men in their truck. There have been at least three reports of this in my immediate vicinity, and it's got me pretty spooked. These incidents are happening on busy roads in the middle of the day, not in secluded areas at dawn or dusk. One of the women who was chased had her babies in a jogging stroller. THIS IS NOT OK!!!
I have never felt unsafe while running close to home. This isn't to say I'm careless though...I make sure my husband knows where I'll be running, I never have headphones on, and I wear brightly colored and/or reflective clothing if I'm out when it's dark. My head is on a swivel, and I am keenly aware of my surroundings. I know full well that bad things can happen to even the most cautious of runners, but I have never felt unsafe...until now.
I have found myself on edge these past few days...looking at every white truck on the road to see if it has the black rims each of these women reported to the police. I see women running alone and I want to either shout to them to be careful, or follow them myself to keep them safe. I even skipped the early morning run I planned at the oceanfront because I couldn't find a buddy to go with me, and I'm too nervous to go by myself right now. THIS IS NOT OK!!!
I wasn't sure when I would get yesterday's run in. It was starting to make me antsy. And then my knight in shining armor showed up. Ryan got home from work relatively early, and since he has a race this weekend, he only had to run three easy miles. As luck would have it, my 3 minute run/1 minute walk x 8 turns out to be roughly 3 miles, and he so kindly agreed to slow his roll (and push the double jogger) so we could go together.
When we first started out, I was irritated. The kids were exhausted from a hot and humid field day, so they were quite whiny. I wanted to go alone, but I didn't feel safe, so a run with my favorite people (whiny and all) was better than no run.
My knee loved this run. Maybe it was the heat and humidity keeping my muscles loosey goosey, or maybe it's just my frickin' time to feel good running again. I felt a freedom in my stride that hasn't been there in four months. For the first time since February, I didn't feel timid. My steps felt comfortable and natural instead of clumsy and awkward. I allowed myself to push the pace a little bit instead of holding back and being careful.
It was high fives all around when I checked Map My Run to find my average pace was 9:23 min/mile, which was almost a minute faster than my last outing of 3 minute intervals. While it wasn't my intention to cut time so drastically, I just did what my body was telling me to do. I'm sure if I continue to feel good, my body will try to tell me to be more aggressive than the program has mapped out, but I'll work to let my brain take over and be the voice of reason. My brain is already winning arguments when my body wants to slack off on warm ups, cool downs, and rehab, and I will continue to do what it takes to return to the sport I have come to love so much. Sometimes that means lying on the floor with my legs in the air.
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And then doing it again because my kids think it looks funny:
When I think about the brutal winter weather, illness, injury, and now psychopaths on the loose in my very own stomping grounds, it would seem as though something or someone is trying to keep me from running. Whoever you are, it's gonna take a hell of a lot more than that to keep these Fancy little feet from lacing up. Ya heard???
I posted on Facebook earlier this week that the local news has been nuts lately. The national news has been disturbing also, but when the news in your own backyard is filled with crazy - shootings, stabbings, an elderly women being beaten to death in her own home, a woman running someone down with her car while her kids roamed free in the backseat, some dude assaulting someone then setting himself on fire - it's more than a little unsettling. Hitting even closer to home are the recent reports of female runners being stalked, and in some cases chased, by a man or men in their truck. There have been at least three reports of this in my immediate vicinity, and it's got me pretty spooked. These incidents are happening on busy roads in the middle of the day, not in secluded areas at dawn or dusk. One of the women who was chased had her babies in a jogging stroller. THIS IS NOT OK!!!
I have never felt unsafe while running close to home. This isn't to say I'm careless though...I make sure my husband knows where I'll be running, I never have headphones on, and I wear brightly colored and/or reflective clothing if I'm out when it's dark. My head is on a swivel, and I am keenly aware of my surroundings. I know full well that bad things can happen to even the most cautious of runners, but I have never felt unsafe...until now.
I have found myself on edge these past few days...looking at every white truck on the road to see if it has the black rims each of these women reported to the police. I see women running alone and I want to either shout to them to be careful, or follow them myself to keep them safe. I even skipped the early morning run I planned at the oceanfront because I couldn't find a buddy to go with me, and I'm too nervous to go by myself right now. THIS IS NOT OK!!!
I wasn't sure when I would get yesterday's run in. It was starting to make me antsy. And then my knight in shining armor showed up. Ryan got home from work relatively early, and since he has a race this weekend, he only had to run three easy miles. As luck would have it, my 3 minute run/1 minute walk x 8 turns out to be roughly 3 miles, and he so kindly agreed to slow his roll (and push the double jogger) so we could go together.
When we first started out, I was irritated. The kids were exhausted from a hot and humid field day, so they were quite whiny. I wanted to go alone, but I didn't feel safe, so a run with my favorite people (whiny and all) was better than no run.
My knee loved this run. Maybe it was the heat and humidity keeping my muscles loosey goosey, or maybe it's just my frickin' time to feel good running again. I felt a freedom in my stride that hasn't been there in four months. For the first time since February, I didn't feel timid. My steps felt comfortable and natural instead of clumsy and awkward. I allowed myself to push the pace a little bit instead of holding back and being careful.
It was high fives all around when I checked Map My Run to find my average pace was 9:23 min/mile, which was almost a minute faster than my last outing of 3 minute intervals. While it wasn't my intention to cut time so drastically, I just did what my body was telling me to do. I'm sure if I continue to feel good, my body will try to tell me to be more aggressive than the program has mapped out, but I'll work to let my brain take over and be the voice of reason. My brain is already winning arguments when my body wants to slack off on warm ups, cool downs, and rehab, and I will continue to do what it takes to return to the sport I have come to love so much. Sometimes that means lying on the floor with my legs in the air.
And then doing it again because my kids think it looks funny:
When I think about the brutal winter weather, illness, injury, and now psychopaths on the loose in my very own stomping grounds, it would seem as though something or someone is trying to keep me from running. Whoever you are, it's gonna take a hell of a lot more than that to keep these Fancy little feet from lacing up. Ya heard???
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