What do you think about?

Getting this out a day early so let me start off by saying that this past week has been a great week for me to run.  I got in three days this week and had a total of over 24 miles.  On Tuesday, after running 10 the previous Sunday, I got out and ran 4 miles.  The reason I only ran 4 was because I was having some sort of pain in my left calf but could pinpoint exactly what was causing it.  It would only hurt when I walked but not when I ran.  Even after running those 4 miles on Tuesday the pain while walking was gone by Thursday.

After missing the last couple of weeks out on Hwy 350, I was ready to get out there again.  I couldn't wait.  It had kicked my butt three weeks ago and I wanted to show it who was boss.  I had decided that I was going to do 5 and evaluate how I felt and either turn back or go on.  Even after getting to the end, 7.5 miles, I still felt good.  My legs really weren't tired and all was well, except that hunger pain that I was feeling.  After making it back to the water stop and 11 miles into my run, I was beginning to feel it.  I will admit that I walked quite a bit of the last four miles.  Looking at my split times, I really didn't start to slow down until mile 13.  Then my time climbed to over a 15 minute pace.  I ended up with a time of 3:18:16.  I also enjoyed the watermelon that Dr Jim Jackson brought.  It had been probably a couple of years since I'd had watermelon and I had already forgot how good it was.

Sunday brought another day for me to get out there and try a new pair of shoes.  I had heard about these great Asics Nimbus shoes and have been looking at them for over a month now.  I decided to go ahead a get a pair of the Nimbus 14.  I could tell they were slightly heavier than the Saucony Ride 3s I have been wearing but I'm sure I'll get used to them.  I ran just over 5 miles in them and they felt really good.  Looking forward to my next run in them.

Some people have asked me before what I think about while I'm out there running.  With permission from my running partner, Jeff, I am going to share a few of those things with you.

If you have ever read any of my very early post, you know that I started this journey alone.  I just started getting up and walking and walking whenever I could.  The first time I ever ran with anyone was on Christmas Eve 2011.  That was over a year after I started.  After that, it was a few months, and now I enjoy running with or without someone.  I know not everybody's schedule fits mine.  All those months that I ran alone and while I was still writing this blog, I would sometimes think about what my next post was going to be about.  I would think about what I would say and how it would motivate or encourage someone else.

I can remember what all Jeff and I talked about on our first run on that Christmas Eve morning except how we got into running and the usual stuff that you talk about when you first meet a person.  Although we had been "friends" on Facebook for a while, we had never seen each other before that day.  Since then, Jeff and I have become good friends and run together when we get a chance.

During most of our runs, we talk about different things and we do talk a lot about running.  We talk about what our goals are and we even talk about some of the things that are happening in the world of sports.  I'm glad Jeff has come along because he motivates me and encourages me, as well as others.  He is always giving others an encouraging word and if you ever get a chance to run with him, you should.

Jeff is running the St Jude Marathon on December 1st and if you'd like to make a donation to St Jude then please do so at Jeff's fund raising page here.  As of this writing, he has raised over $1000 and is looking to raise $2000.  He is part of a team, Team Corinth, that hopes to raise $40,000 for St Jude and they are well on their way with almost $15,000 in donations.  If you can, please give to this worthy cause.

Thanks for stopping by this week and I will see you again next week.