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Archive for the ‘This Is Life’ Category

Everything All The Time

Posted in Fitness, Health and Wellness, Inspirational, Motivational, Running, This Is Life, Uncategorized on November 1, 2015| Leave a Comment »

 
Frost on the ground. Frost on my skin. Warmth in my blood. I plug in my tunes and tune out the world. It’s the closest I can get to being off the grid, at least for a few hours. No matter the past week, long hours, or sleepless nights that lead up to Saturday morning, nothing can take away my love of my weekend long runs. 

I hit the road early before the sun opens up and shines her brilliance on the eastern plains of Colorado. Partly, because I want to hide in the darkness; to be alone and unnoticed. And partly, to enjoy the delicate silence that only darkness can bring. 

The bitter crispness fills my lungs as October turns into November. My heartbeat races, and my mind mellows. Sometimes it only takes a few miles to detach from the “everything’s” of this world. Sometimes my heart is heavy and my prayers are constant. These are the days when the pavement touches my feet the longest. 

Everything all the time. No. This is how we wind ourselves into the ground. Everything has a time, and He has made everything beautiful in  its time (Ecclesiastes 3). Not in my time, and not everything all the time. 

No shortage of roads. No shortage of thoughts.

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Wanderlust

Posted in Fitness, Health and Wellness, Inspirational, Motivational, Running, This Is Life, Uncategorized on August 22, 2015| Leave a Comment »

  
Few things make me as happy as getting lost in the great outdoors. This is quite possibly the reason I absolutely love getting up before the sun…and most normal people. I can escape into my dreamland with my eyes wide open. 

With a schedule that should be shared by three of me, once I’ve dropped the kids off and headed into work I am rarely able to sit and breathe until I’ve wrapped up and headed home. Truth be told, by the time dinner, baths, and homework is done it’s well after eight o’clock before I all but manage to get the 4-year-old in bed before collapsing in mine. 

But, I. LOVE. MY. LIFE. (I’m sure someone will correct my grammatical errors in that last sentence.) It doesn’t matter if I’m Paleo this week, low carb next, running a 16 mile long run, or feeling like my joints are going to explode from RA.  Sometimes I need a nap. Sometimes I need to climb another 14-er. Sometimes I need NPR radio. Sometimes I need Def Leppard. 

I take it one day at a time and surround myself with only those who give me love, comfort, and happiness. 

Yeah. I might live in my own little world, but I love it here. 

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Liquid Mind

Posted in Fitness, Health and Wellness, Inspirational, Motivational, Running, This Is Life, Uncategorized on August 4, 2015| Leave a Comment »

I didn’t know what day of the week today was, but I’m okay with that because I’m on vacation. The only thing on my agenda was a beach run, followed by a beach sit. Maybe some fresh local fish and goat cheese sprinkled throughout to keep me upright. 

Since I’m still on Denver time, 4:30AM in Maui really is like sleeping in. Fortunately, my husband is also adjusting to the four hour time difference, so getting out just before sunrise to stay as cool as possible on my run is still very doable. I might have beat the sun, but I cannot outrun the humidity. I was wise enough to pack my fuel belt so I could carry water on my runs (I’ve done this before). 

Good run with more hills than I had planned, but those miles are done and I am now parked on the beach with my Lover and Bad Ass iced coffee (Don’t judge. That’s really the name of the coffee joint…and what I call my husband.)
Next up? Don’t know. Don’t care. I’m sitting on a beach in Maui. 

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Let the Day Begin

Posted in Fitness, Health and Wellness, Inspirational, Motivational, Running, This Is Life, Uncategorized on August 1, 2015| 2 Comments »

  
It’s 4:00AM and the alarm goes off. I hit the snooze button for the second (or third) time before rolling over and crawling out of bed. I think for a brief moment what it would be like to sleep in past five, but my mind is already awake and active. 

My workout is not the only thing on my mind. There’s a world of activities that must take place over the next 16 hours. And, this is where my day begins. 

The morning starts slow with a ramp up of pace and intensity. With each step, each movement, the blood begins to flow, the heart begins to pound, and the mind begins to sharpen with keeneness and foresight. The mind tries to weaken as the body begins to tire. “Not today”, I tell myself again and again.

The peak. The heartbeat. The intensity. The sweat. I choose my destiny. 

The day is mine.

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I’ve Had the Time of My Life

Posted in Fitness, Health and Wellness, Inspirational, Motivational, Running, This Is Life on May 12, 2015| Leave a Comment »

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Like most evenings after dinner, I stood staring at my grocery list determining what I needed to get at the grocery store next (never mind I had already been once today…and twice on Sunday). I’m the lucky owner of two teenage boys and a toddler, a husband, a dog, and a very old cat. It’s a rare day that I actually DON’T go to the store. My list had two things on it, until I added the third and critically most important. I stood there laughing at myself as I was writing it, but I was ever so content. I had busted my tail on my run this morning, and trust me it doesn’t get any easier the older you get. I counted calories all freaking day long. So, when I got home I was more than happy to twist off the cap to the gigantuous bottle of Grand Marnier my husband bought me (oh, how he LOVES me). I watched with enchantment as the gorgeous liquid filled the beautiful round-bottomed glass I’d bought just for this special indulgence (I know it’s only Tuesday…don’t judge). My mouth began to turn upwards as I swirled the glass, taking a big inhale. I exhaled with contentment as I took my first sip. I pulled the bottle out of the cupboard (have I mentioned I LOVE my husband???) and noticed that there were just droplets left.

What? Oh no. The beautiful round-bottomed glass would be emptied far too soon. I savored each drink, trying to prolong the end of the gorgeous liquid. The world was circling around me; children eating dinner, dishes being done, laundry being changed, but I was a statue in time. A simple glass in my hand. A dream of early bedtime. A thought that my run tomorrow would feel as if I were an antelope, dancing through the fields of eastern Colorado.

And then, my phone rang. I answered to the voice of a generic male voice from the school calling me to remind me that “my student’s lunch balance was below $10”. I quickly hung up, sat back against the kitchen counter, swirled the gorgeous drink and inhaled again before taking another savory sip. The phone rang one more time, this time with a generic woman’s voice telling me that “my student’s lunch balance was below $10”. I get it. I get it. I turned my phone off, turned my attention to the 4-year-old who decided he was hungry for the third time this evening, and smiled in contentment.

It might have only been a 10 minute reprieve, but as I get older I realize it’s not about how many races I’ve finished, how many organic meals I make, or how hard I try to keep the house clean. It’s about those few minutes each day that I take to stop the world around me; to pause and see the blessings swirling around my world.

I’ll take every minute I have regardless of the chaos…4AM runs because of work and baseball, dinners standing up, rushing out of the house at 6:30 for work…because I know I’m having the time of my life.

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