Run Night

Tonight after our run, I went up to our head coach, Scott, and I said "You know Scott I really like you and...." With that he interrupted with an "OK" and proceeded to wrap himself in my coat that I was about to put on.

"AND," I continued, "think you're fabulous and all. But there are times when I really want to throw up on your shoes."

He laughed and said that I could throw up on his shoes if I could catch him. He then walked over, laughing still, and said "Thank you," while giving me a hug.

I'll paraphrase the rest. He then went on to explain that major changes come over long periods of time. That it is hard to mark your progress, unless you get on a treadmill with a heart rate monitor - a controlled event. Then sure you could see the changes, but what we do outside is put in a hard effort on different terrain.

It's like last year when I was told, "It doesn't get easier, you just go farther or faster." He finished with telling me I was doing fine and that all I needed was to keep putting the effort in.

In other words be patient. Sounds like a life lesson to me, and that is what this year seems to be about. Slow down a little to work on form, and the rest will come in time. I'm finding that my biggest struggle is how to be patient. Last year, I made huge changes.

I guess that was to be expected because I had never done anything like it before. But it's hard not to be frustrated by small moves in the right direction. So, I'm working hard on being patient, which seems to me is a contradiction. Nevertheless, that is what I am doing.