Monday Meditations...

Learning about pace...

I am not a person who is ANY good at pace. I eat fast, I drink fast. I read books as quickly as I can (especially if they are good ones). So when I started running, I wanted to run fast. And I have focused a lot of energy trying to run faster. But with the half marathon only a few months away, I knew that pace was going to be important. So on Saturday, after 6 long hours of writing memo, I decided to take a run in the sunshine.

I started really slow. To the point where I was just annoyed that I wasn't running faster. But then I realized that you can see more when you take your time. I was noticing all the runners and their posture-whether they ran with long strides or short, how they used their arms. Lots of people were out since the weather was so nice. A guy was letting his dog pull him on his skateboard-weaving in and out of the rest of us. The crowd thinned once I got to Star City and I could spend a little time in my own thoughts. And before I knew it, I was halfway--5.5 miles. I took a moment to snap a pic or two. I would like to say the whole run was easy breezy. But that isn't how running goes. I finished 11 miles in 105 minutes. My pace was around 9:36.

So what have I been missing my whole life doing things so fast? Pace yourself...those people knew what they were talking about!

Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson