May Day May Day!

    Have you ever seen a movie where a plane is crashing? All the lights are flashing, things are buzzing, the pilot is struggling with the wheel and they are dumping gas and baggage to stay in the air? That's what I sometimes feel like each time I run. Each week we are going farther than I have ever been and its a struggle just to know where to go, to stay running, and finish upright. " May Day May Day I'm going down" echos through my head. Where's the co pilot? My daughter noticed I was keeping track of my food intake. I told her I was dumping weight so I could run faster, just like that plane going down. I'm focused on dropping a few pounds to be kinder to my knees and ankles. I'm finding will power I never knew I had. When I work so hard to complete a run, there is no way I'm going to undo what I did with bad food choices! I've been wine free since Easter. Since I enjoy a glass of wine on Fridays, this was no small feat!

     We ran downtown Utica last Monday, Boilermaker finish line, out a few miles and back. The sun was shining and my car told me it was 80 degrees. I had on spandex capris, a tshirt and hat. About a mile in I realized I was way over dressed. I really wanted to strip off my clothes, but figured I'd get arrested for indecent exposure. The run was a struggle, I had to walk a couple times and I was dying. Every time I run I learn something new. This day I learned less is more. I had a lot of water at the water stop, was encouraged by the cheering section of folks at the corner of York and Court street who actually told me they'd see me at the Boilermaker. I looked around to see who they were talking to. Me. They were cheering for me. They don't even know me. I fought to finish the run and looked up in time to see the Boilermaker finish line sign. I ran under its greatness. Something in my thought process shifted. I'm training. Wine free. Working hard. I am going to finish this race in July. Those people knew that.
   
     I dropped more cargo and weight this weekend. A visor to replace the full hat, compression shorts and a paper thin shirt. New headphones that won't fall off my ears were a bonus! I met up with the group today to run at SUNY It. Lighter and inspired I didn't feel like I was on a crash course and dropped 3 min from my time! A hill I walked last Saturday I ran up today. I didn't feel sick at the end either. Progress. Radio the tower, I'm back on course and flying high. Joe said we're doing hills next Saturday. Real hills. Buckle up baby, we're going to do this!