a run in the rain

I decided to go for a run last night. And it happened to be a wonderful idea! And sort of horrible at the same time…but only slightly horrible. I don’t usually go running after work because it’s too hot at that time of day, but yesterday was something special, especially for the southwest. It was raining! 

It was so beautiful outside with the clouds and thunder and rain that I just had to get out there and run! So, I drove over to Reid Park and began to make my way around the course. It was a soft drizzle the whole time (soooo nice to run in) and there was only one problem: the lightning. I don’t believe I have ever run that fast to get from one covered spot to another. But believe me, I did. I got to one nicely covered corner and waited for a few minutes. It really felt like no one was out on the course except me. But then this macho runner came speeding by and I did a stupid thing and told myself to suck it up like him and get out there. Ugh. Why do I constantly try and compete with others? 

So I ran.
And the lightning continued.
And I ran faster.
And this continued on for about another 15 minutes until  the  weather settled down. I made my way around to my car in about 30 or so minutes and decided I didn’t want to stop. So, I made another lap around the Park. It felt great! I love pushing myself. My legs ache so badly today, but it was well worth it. :)

Total Miles: 5.87
Time: 1:00:39
Avg. Pace: 10'20"

I didn’t get a chance to do my postrun stretching. That’s something I plan to work on. Which actually brings me to something else: my goals. I made  a list of nonspecific goals for this next semester. I feel, just with my past experience, that goals are super important with a sport as challenging as running. It’s challenging because you don’t have a team to help you out with training and whatnot (usually). That’s where I’m at anyway. I have yet o join a running group and so I am doing this all by myself. Which is very hard for me to do, obviously (see previous post…).

I plan on doing a lot of things with my running this coming semester. I have a marathon to train for, I have groups to join, and I have a lot of training to do; training I’m not used to. One of my future posts will be this list excepted revised and more specific. Call this a rough draft. So, here they are:

*Run the Rock ‘n’ Roll Phoenix Marathon in January. (woohoo!!! my first one!!!)
*Run a half Marathon before that. (for kicks)
*Drink more water
*Stretch more (after every run)
*Warm up! (I’m really bad at this one. I usually just jump into a run)
*Join a running group! (whether it’s  with my school or a group around town, but it should be organized, so no groups of friends…we’ll get nothing done!)
*Read a running book or two (another just for kicks) :)

That’s about it for now, goal-wise. I’ll definitely revise this, and perhaps add some more. There’s always room for improvement, right? :) I'm always searching other runners blogs looking for good goal ideas. If you have any goals that stand out,I love to hear about them! :)