Getting Ready...

So, no posts for a little while... I bet some of you think that means no running, huh?  :-)  Well, not the case.  Now, have I been running every day?  Heck no... are you kidding?  The routine is so hard to establish with the current schedule I keep.  But, that's all on me.  I suppose I could change it at any time, to a degree, to accomodate some more running.  Honestly, though, it's not been the priority it once was...life is different, pursuits are different, all in all, things are just a little different.  I struggle with it from time to time, but a reminder of the end result I'm after helps bring me back.

So, with all that being said, I'm preparing for my first race in nearly 2 years.  The last race I ran was back in June 2010...I ran a 16:01 for 5k.  As a matter of fact, if I look at my prior races, they were a 5k in 16:01, a 5k in 15:51, a 10k in around 34:00, a half marathon in 1:13...

Saturday, there will be no PR, no blistering pace, no age-group award, probably.  All it will be is for 2 purposes, and I'll do whatever I need to do to achieve those two purposes.  It's funny when you have to mentally prepare for both the pain and the humility of the moment.  As I improved a couple of years ago, I tried to remain humble, grounded and focused on what I wanted.  Now, being a runner that resembles the runner I was allllllllllll the way back in 2000 when I first started running on the roads, I'm reminded of how easy it is to lose track of all the possibilities...both positive and negative.  What makes this all easier to handle is that I have never forgotten where I came from, what I went through, and all that it has taken to get to where I was.  And now to be back at the beginning, it's a strange feeling.  But for me, running has taken on a deeper, more meaningful purpose and direction.  I like it...it moves me, drives me, and carries me in a way that it never has before. 

I enjoy running again, which is awesome, because I spent a lot of time after the injuries began when I didn't enjoy anything about running.  It's good to have that enjoyment back in my heart.

But, let's keep it straight...I'm one who has never improved without running with a little anger on the inside.  And there is no shortage of fuel to add to this fire that is growing. 

I'll post race details after what promises to be a busy but fun weekend.