Another RnT!

When my mentor announced the next ride and tie coming up in our area I knew I was in trouble.

It's early in the season - May. I haven't done any substantial running or riding since our last one in October. Not that my mentor knows that. I fact, I'm fairly confident that she's blissfully unaware of the amount of fattening and NOT running that her RnT partner has undergone in the last several months.

Want to hear my excuses. Of course you do.

1. I sprained my ankle in the middle of our first loop of our last RnT and I couldn't run for a month or so.

2. Then I got a really bad cold and was out for like three months (respiratory distress you know....)

3. I *always* gain five pounds in the winter (self fulfilling prophesy anyone?)

4. It's been cold. And wet.

5. Rest is the base of any training plan! I am preventing injury as I sit here on the couch and snack on m and ms and popcorn! (if you must know, this is my favorite excuse).

I told myself these were all really good excuses as I laced up my running shoes yesterday for my first run in what felt like a decade. I tried to console myself with the idea of how much fitness could someone really lose three months? And I've done this starting over thingy so many times that at some point my body would say "eh, you've given your dues. I can see you are really dedicated to this even though you are a bit spotty so let's just skip the pain and discomfort of those first couple of work outs shall we?". By all means yes.

Predictably, I looked (and felt) like every other new years resolution out there. I managed just five intervals (was up to ten comfortably) before deciding that I had too much pride to puke in front of everyone on the asphalt of the arboretum, that shoes DO suck (had to wear running shoes that I found in the depths of my locker being unable to locate my barefoot shoes at the moment) , and that running was clearly designed to kill people as there is nothing worse than nausea, wheezing for the afternoon afterward, and then having a massive allergy attack in the afternoon lab that had me begging for benedryl, which zonked me out spectacularly until I managed to crawl into bed at eight o'clock.

Oh yes. That was fun. Let's do that on a regular basis! *rolls eyes*.

I did wonder whether Farley felt like this on a ride after an extended break and judging from her attitude and sheer joy, I have to think that she does not.

And that folks, is the difference between an animal born to run, and one that was born to sit on the couch and eat popcorn.

Fortunately I know from vast experience of starting up running (and swearing that I will never ever put myself in the situation of having to do so again...) that this suckiness will last all of two or three runs and then I'll get sucked into the sheer joy of endorphins, power, speed, and movement. But if I didnt have that assurance, I dont know why ANYONE would stick with running after trying it for the first time.

I was rewarded for the pitiful five or ten minutes total that I spent running my muscle soreness this morning that reminded me of the following facts.

1. Biking is not running

2. Backpacking is not running

3. Tread desk is not running

4. A Fattening is not running

5. Walking the dog is not running

You may (rightly) judge that oncology is not my favorite subject based on the volume of posts occurring this block. Seriously folks. If there is one subject that I am NOT interested in, in any shape or form, it is oncology. I can do anything for two weeks right? Because the only thing worse than onco would be to spend my summer doing onco AGAIN.

Besides sitting in the classroom and (unsuccessfully) trying to convince myself that it is worth paying attention to onco because I am paying money to do so...and there's a one in three chance that onco will come very PERSONALLY relevant to me some day (at which point everything I'm learning will be obsolete anyways).....on the list for today is:

1. Attempt some strength training. If you hear sirens this afternoon, that's the medics trying to revive me at the bottom of some stairwell.

2. Turn out Farley and do some lunge exercises.

3. Practice my excited voice, so im believable when I agree with my mentor that yes, the 25 mile course at the may RnT is a WONDERFUL idea, and of course I've been keeping up my fitness..........

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