Rage Is the Best Motivation

Today was a beautiful Ohio day--50 degrees, sunny.  I was aching to go outside and run, but my husband works on Saturdays, and I can't leave my kids alone if there is a possibility that I can't get back to them quickly.  So, I cleaned my house and I stewed and glanced longingly outside.

This is NOT how 50 degrees looks in Ohio, but for a runner, it's pretty damn close.

I decided to take my kids for haircuts to a modestly-priced, popular chain salon, where I watched a woman butcher my daughter's beautiful curly hair.  I wasn't able to stop her in time to fix the damage.

This is a haircut?  SMH.

I was so angry that I reverted to my very best suppression tactic:  the smile.  As we were waiting for my daughter to finish with the haircut, my son looked at me and said nervously, "Maman, please don't smile.  You're freaking me out."  He knows.

When I got home, I thought I was going to erupt, but I held it together, and thank God my husband came home early from work.  He is a smart man when he chooses to be, and after I told him about our afternoon and I showed him "the haircut," he wisely decided to take the kids out for shopping and dinner while I went for a run.  I do love that man; that is why I have allowed him to live this long.

I haven't been able to run on roads and sidewalks for a few months because the weather has been so treacherous, but today the snow had melted on most of the sidewalks, and I was excited to put my legs through their paces.  I have been running on trails on Sundays, and the massive amounts of snow and ice meant that my pace was usually around the 12-13 minute/mile.  What was particularly difficult for me was that I didn't absolutely know that it was because of the snow or if it was because I lost so much of my training when I was recovering from my broken foot.  Today I decided to push myself, and I'm so glad I did.

My 4.06-mile run today clocked in at 41 minutes, a 10:09 pace, and this included having to walk on occasion when there was ice on the sidewalk.  I am so happy!  I can still run, and I can push myself without snapping the foot in two!

When I came back, I was zoning in my runner's high, and two glasses of wine and some pizza later, I'm still glowing.

I am so lucky.

After all, it could have been my hair.

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