Called Out
I forgot my gym bag today so, because Stephen is burning a week of paid time off this week, I asked him to bring it to my office before my personal training appointment. He brought the dog with him. People I work more closely with greeted him by name, which made him whine with excitement. My VP of Engineering said, "Indy! I see you on Instagram all the time!"
I only felt slightly called out.
It looks like Stephen and I will have to take him on walks before and after work, in addition to his weekday walks with his rescuer. (We quote the husky panel from this collection of drawings a lot in our house.) The extra activity works out in my favor, though. I'm working back up to a half-marathon distance, and I know from the carnage that happened to my feet last time1 that I have to drop some weight and build up some leg strength. Plus having a fitness goal helps me see any goals along the way as just tasks to check off, and I'm scheduled to take my AWS certification exam in September.
Coaching starts back up next Saturday. I'm not ready. I will almost be coaching myself as much as anyone else. But I am delighted that this year my two co-coaches are people I've coached before, people who have become runners through incredible odds. When they use my own words against me - including "never give up on a downhill" - I can't help but dig deeper. So bring on the oven heat, the sunscreen in my eyes, whistle at the ready and eyes on my Garmin.
Goodreads update:
1: I developed blisters the width of the balls of my feet. One popped as I landed hard around the 8 mile mark on the sidewalk along Music Row. I yelped so loud my running partner thought I'd broken something. I had to walk two miles to my car, parked across the river.
← Back home