Marathon training day 2…

Fartlek Run! For today, I had scheduled a 3.4 mile run at a suggested 10:17 min/mil pace. Not exactly there yet, but close. My stats for today were 3.4 miles at a 12:46 min/mil pace (intervals run:walk of 4:1). I am sticking to my run:walk intervals simply because I want to preserve my knees, and it doesn’t seem to hurt my overall average pace and time, so I’m good. Now for how it all felt… TODAY WAS AWESOME! I woke up with such energy and a conquer the day mindset. My runs are a little later in the morning that what I was used to before, but that is because I am starting to take my time with a lot of things these days. I’m learning to appreciate the importance of being in the moment and of just breathing. I want my daily preparation routine to be more than run, shower, work, kids, work, kids, repeat. With this said, my day started at 6:30 a.m., dressing for my run, preparing my coffee, gathering my bible and journal, and ensuring my space in the living room was free of clutter. I did my bible reading/prayer and journaling first, then moved the coffee table to the side and started a 12 minute guided meditation found on Youtube. I am still learning how to do this mediation thing, some days are better than others lol… today thoughts of I don’t know what were flooding my head. I did as taught though and just kindly guided them out and restarted my breathing. AMAZING! Now, I was ready to go out for my run. I did my 5 min warm up walk then started my intervals. The fartlek sprints were guided by stop signs, street signs, and bushes along the way that I would point to and focus on as I sprinted. I listened to a fun run playlist on Spotify and just enjoyed the energy. I found my new favorite song, I Got You by Train! Where has this band been all my life! I’ve listened to them before but never really just enjoyed their music. Either that, or I’m just happy and learning to enjoy simple things like music that makes me want to dance. Most importantly, I’M DANCING AGAIN! Figuratively and literally! My day continued with meetings and more work but I was ready. I even took a break to mow my lawn! Here is where I should explain why there is a picture of my backyard on my home page. This is because it symbolizes freedom, peace, and independence for me. I sit on my patio staring at a freshly mowed lawn that I paid for, I mowed, and that space belongs to me. You cannot enter it unless I invite you and you have to leave it when I say so. Yes…. I think it was a good decision to start marathon training again…