Hold on!

"And so hold on when there is nothing in you, except the will which says to them, "Hold on."

Today was one of the toughest runs since I started running again.

5 miles including 3 times up a loop that with one of the steepest hills I've run up. Definitely in the top 5 of steep hills I've run up.

The hill was tough but even tougher was the sun and the increasing heat.

I started just after 8:30 because I'm running a 5K in a little over a week that starts at 8:30.

The last mile and a half was really tough but near the end I just kept repeating to myself that phrase - "And so hold on when there is nothing in you, except the will that says to them, "hold on."

That mantra really helped.

First speedwork

I went running again yesterday.

I left just before sunset thinking it would be cool. I was wrong.

Lately I've been running first thing in the morning and the temperature has been in the low 70s and not too humid.

Yesterday's run - only two miles - took me by some shade trees but there was nothing to be shaded from.

It was however incredibly humid.

I'd made up my mind to do a little speedwork - sprinting for the distance of two mailboxes - on the second mile.

Maybe I should have saved that for a cooler day, but I finished the run and all in all it was good.

Today will be a rest day.

Trust the Universe

We'll see about posting on this blog again.

I've started running again after a layoff of probably over a year. Six months is probably long enough to completely lose all fitness and I definitely feel that way also.

Completely out of shape.

I signed up for a 5K today. It's free through work - I guess they signed up for a group registration or something like that and this 5K seems to support a good cause.

Anyway, I'll keep this post short like my runs have been lately.

I saw a sign posted at someone's cubicle at work last night.

It was a piece of paper with three words on it. "Trust the Universe"

And at some point after it was printed, the girl who sat there had hand-printed an exclamation mark after universe.

Trust the Universe!

Well, that's good advice. Especially for me right now. The last couple of years have not been what I would have expected.

But I'm still here. I'm currently working an overnight shift from around midnight to around 6 a.m. It's tough.

I've found that it's not as hard as I thought it would be to stay awake for my shift, but it is hard to sleep during the day.

That's one of the main reasons I've returned to running. To try to be able to sleep better during the day.

I've also re-learned that running is great time for prayer and meditation.