Slow Running

I went for a run today. A very slow run. The clouds in the sky were low and threatening, and my legs just did not want to move. And then there was the wind. Today was not terribly windy by Edinburgh standards. That means it was pretty darn windy by my standards. I've decided that running into the wind, even at the very slow pace I was capable of today, is just not fun.

I basically had to trick my legs into running. After making my weekly trip to the grocery store, I talked my legs into a bit of stretching, now that they were warmed up from the walk to the store, and since it wasn't raining yet, wouldn't it be nice to go down and to the canal and see the ducks?

The canal was very busy today. I think it's the first time I've been down there on a Saturday. I passed kids playing soccer. I'm pretty sure they were running faster than me. But then, they're littler, which means they have less wind resistance. There were rowers out on the canal; crew teams from some school or club, I think. Their coaches road bikes along the path to keep up with teams and shout advice. And of course there were the usual ducks and dogs. I really need to figure out a way to take pictures while running, because there were some really good opportunities today. Like the little kid in a Superman costume. And the duck bottoms.

Even though my run this morning definitely falls under the not fun category, I'm glad I did it. Not because afterwards I felt amazingly great, which sometimes happens, but because of the sense of accomplishment of making yourself do something that you know you should do, but that you really don't want to do. Also, today's run marked the end of two weeks of sticking to my running plan. And I have the stars to prove it.