Sunday night, after the sun set, I found myself in my front yard with Winnipeg. Something snapped under my feet, and I started running as fast as I could...wearing flip flops. And it felt so good to feel my legs push my body forward as my feet touched and lifted off the ground. My lungs filled with air. Good air that they have been craving. I felt like I was flying. Dogs are the perfect companion for such random moments, and she jumped right into the game. She's a faster runner than I am, and she can be a bit frightening to watch barreling forward because you think she won't stop. But she usually does. I'm still smiling at the thought of me and my dog running like maniacs in the front yard. As fast as we could. And laughing loudly. And not caring who might have seen it. Feet touch ground. Lift off. Pushes me forward. Flying. Lungs fill with air. Exhale. Pushes me forward. Satiated. Legs jump in the night. Dodges. Pushes me forward. Delight. Here there is no finish line. We ...

I mentioned on my Twitter page that I would post my running routine here, so you can certainly stop reading now if you're not the least bit interested in what I do on the treadmill. (There's not much reason to post about my road runs; they're pretty straight forward...keep pounding the pavement.) Keep in mind that I'm still technically a beginning runner and am looking for what works for me. So here goes... 1/15/10 Treadmill Run .5 miles @ 5.5 - 0 incline .25 miles @ 5.0 - 1 incline .25 miles @ 4.0 - 2 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 3 incline .25 miles @ 4.5 - 4 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 5 incline .25 miles @ 4.0 - 4 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 3 incline .25 miles @ 5.0 - 2 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 1 incline .5 miles @ 4.5 - 1 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 7 incline .5 miles @ 5.0 - o incline .25 miles @ whatever I felt like - 0 incline So there you have it. It was a good workout, and there is no doubt in my mind that no man will ever try to pick me up when I'm running like ...

On the final leg of my Christmas trip, I stopped at Jen and Dan's house in Ocala. It was a nice, half-way point where I could get some quick sleep in a real bed and dish a bit with Jen before heading back to pick up the dog from the kennel. My original plan called for an 8 o'clock arrival, which would have given us plenty of time to see each other. However, I really have no concept of time and left South Carolina three hours later than I intended. In the grand scheme of things, I figured that twenty years from now, I would rather have the memories of a few more hours with my 83 year old grandmother than my 31 year old friend. While driving along US301 in south Georgia, watching the clock move closer and closer to midnight and updating Jen with a later and later ETA, my guilt took over. I still stand by my earlier decision, but I also had a difficult time accepting the fact that I would not be in Ocala when I said I would. As a result, I finally agreed to run the Five Points o...

I finally made it to the running store this weekend and walked out with a new pair of running shoes designed to correct my supination, a water bottle belt, sample tubes of glucose gel, stuff to prevent blisters on my feet, and a running-themed car magnet. I feel like a real runner now...it was the magnet that did it! Running and I have had a love-hate relationship lately, and I won't bore you with all the details. The thought of running more than 4 miles right now is a bit overwhelming, mostly because I'm desperately afraid of boredom. You see, I really can't listen to music when I run. It bores me. I can't read when I run (that's only possible on a treadmill anyway). My mind is so crammed these days that it can't even begin to unwind. Yet, I love the way my body is changing. I can finally feel the bones in my hips again. My rear is lifting before my very eyes. My knees are starting to get a knobby look to them that I see only on runners. You should see my legs....

The greatest blessing in my life today is the ability to run on that heavenly treadmill at my gym. I am overflowing with gratitude from every fiber of my being for my two legs (even the aching knee), that glorious machine made of plastic and gears and moving band, and Linkin Park. I needed some decent music for running today, and still haven't figured out what brand of crack I was smoking when I decided that "Joy to the World" and "Hips Don't Lie" were good choices for a running workout. As I frantically searched my iPod for something...anything with a pounding beat that could blast away all the crap in my head, I clicked on " Don't Stay " by Linkin Park. "Don't stay...forget our memories." And I clicked repeat. "Just give me myself back, and don't stay." And I clicked repeat. "I don't need one more day of you wasting me away." And I clicked repeat. It was heaven. The song shouted and screamed and pound...

I joined a new gym yesterday. I tend to have love/hate relationships with the gym. I love the environment--slamming weights, huffing runners, and even the snooty exercise classes. I hate paying for it, thinking I have enough "stuff" at home to run my own gym. Yesterday I decided to go ahead and get a new membership because it will get me out of the house and the unpredictable rain has really hampered my running lately. So I stopped in today for my short run training. You know how I feel about running. I love the pounding feet and the solitude of being wrapped up in my own head. In fact, I often workout without music because the silent repetitiveness is soothing for me and helps me think through my life in really strange ways. Like, I've been working on my conversational Spanish lately, and I spent the entire time on the treadmill talking to myself in Spanish. Today I hopped on the treadmill with the goal of completing 1.5 miles. I'm new to this and trying to work up t...

I've had a recurring dream for the last year or so that always seems to involve the same group of people. The situations change, but the people and the feelings associated with being around them remain constant. I believe very strongly in the power of dreams. Whether or not they are just random images being sorted by the sleeping brain or unconscious messages, I firmly believe we have them for a reason, especially when they repeat. This morning I woke from that recurring dream, and I think I finally figured out what it means. The people in the dream are real people from my life, and they all have something in common. They took a dream away from me. This realization has had me thinking most of the morning. How many times have I relinquished or allowed someone to take a dream away from me? Far more than I like to admit. How many times have I taken a dream from someone? I'm not sure. It's a sobering thought. And you know what? It's kept me from dreaming. With this in mind,...

I ran my first 5K race yesterday. It was the Walk for Paws benefit for the Naples Humane Society. The air was a delightful 40 degrees with a crisp breeze. The native Floridian in me was completely comfortable in a long sleeve shirt and sweatpants. The control freak in me was extremely anxious about the details of the race, and my brain raced through ideas like finding the starting line and hoping I wouldn't be the last one to cross the finish line. I didn't know if other people would bring their iPods, so I left mine in the car. I worried over where to place my number on my shirt and whether or not I would look like a complete dork when I ran. The whole experience was a blast. We all started with a light jog, but it wasn't long before I fell behind my friends. They ran the entire course. Since I've only been training for two weeks, I did my run/walk alternation. I was in HEAVEN! For a little more than three miles, I let my mind wander and thoughts run wild with every st...

Last week I signed up for the Iron Girl 5K run in Clearwater. My friend, Sundi , mentioned it on her blog, and I completely fell in love with the name. Sundi's fitness journey has been an inspiration to me, and somehow it just seemed fitting to get my feet wet with this race. The Iron Girl is also a convenient location for my former workout buddy, Jen, to meet up with me. Jen started running back in October, and she will be running Gasparilla next month. We're going to do Iron Girl together in April, and I think this will become at least an annual event. Running a race together, that is. At Jen's recommendation, I'm following Jeff Galloway's training schedule. This means I had my first long run today. I laced up my new Nike Pegasus shoes, slapped on a sports bra, and headed out. Today's goal was 1 mile, running for 30 seconds and then walking for 60 seconds. I knew I was out of shape. I just didn't know I was THIS out of shape. I mean, I used to run on the t...