Back in the Saddle

I went on my first official run (outside of park walls) since my little incident last week. It's not for lack of trying. I did get to walk with Ryan Friday after work. Saturday, I attempted a run at the park with the two rugrats (Duke and Aspen), but I didn't make it half-a-mile before a man kindly asked how long the trail is, and before I could answer him in a complete sentence, Aspen lurched toward him, about causing the man a heart attack. Talk about misbehaving dogs....jeez. At least mine was on a leash, and promptly got a whack on the behind, and got taken back to the car and back home without a walk because he was a bad dog. Maybe he learned a lesson, but I missed another run.

Sunday we went fishing at 5 a.m., which led to an afternoon nap, and more fishing at 7 p.m. = another day without running. Monday, some clouds (if you didn't see them, click on this link, they were crazy-cool clouds) rolled in, making for a wonderful afternoon for a walk in the park. Ryan and I set out to do a few laps. The goal was to walk 2 or 3 together, then Ryan would head to the gym to lift some weights, and I would carry on to finish out 5 miles total. Well, conversation was great and before we knew it (1.5 hours later), we had walked 6 miles! So, we both headed home for dinner after that...no running.


Finally, tonight was my normal pilates at 5:30, dinner around 7, and I decided to head out around 8:15 for a jog on my usual, safe 3-point-something mile out-and-back route near the house. The dogs came along which made for a nice hum of panting and occasional drool dripping down the legs. The hot, sticky air, we were running through made us all struggle a bit, but I was happy, hot, loathing the hills, but happy to be back into the swing of things.


And let me just go back to Friday and Monday...This whole walking-with-Ryan thing is a fairly new development. Ryan has never been much for cardio of any kind. He started working out more often (pumping some iron) last fall, but it has only been in the past 6 months or so that he has been walking a good bit. It's not unusual now for us to walk at least a couple days/week together. That makes me so happy, not only because he is healthier and happier, but because of the time it gives us together. When was the last time you got lost in an hour-and-a-half long conversation with your significant other?.. Without the T.V. in the background, without kids, dogs, work, cell phones, computers or other distractions? With just the sound of shoes hitting the pavement and your two voices? I know it seems nearly impossible in this fast-paced society. And for me sometimes it means slowing down and missing a run, but I wouldn't miss times like that for anything in the world.