Here I Go Again...

And I'm back to running again!  All my good intentions for running in Athens flew right out the window and I spent most of my limited free time napping, because I was so jet-lagged.  I'm still not sure I ever really acclimatized to the time difference, especially after I stayed up until about 5:30am Greek time on the last night I was there and never felt tired, even without coffee.  And I had to be up at 7am to leave the hotel to catch my plane.  So all of that, plus the return jet lag and a general exhaustion that seems to have set in over the past few weeks has thrown me right off track.  I'm not sure what it is, but I've just been. so. tired. lately. 

So I gave myself this weekend to get as much sleep as possible, since I was out of town last weekend, which of course, meant I had trouble falling asleep last night (awesome) even though I was still tired all day long.  I decided I need to be doing more yoga (like every day) and get back to my running, so I picked today as the day to start, no excuses.  I know it's not necessary to start on a Monday, but there's something about starting something new on a Monday that just feels right.  I also decided that I need to be drinking coffee every day, so I got a baby coffee maker on sale at Target yesterday.  So although I was tired today, I didn't feel like my eyes were closing at my desk like I have the last few weeks!

Unfortunately, I had a serious case of the Mondays when I woke up.  Not only had I not fallen asleep until after 2am, but the puppy woke me up at 6:30. I think he knows the time I set my alarm for, and aims for about an hour beforehand, just to keep me from sleeping a decent amount of time.  I refused to let him out, since I know how long he can wait for, but he continued to whine until I finally got up about an hour later. So that started me off grouchy.  But I did get in my yoga practice, and have been feeling it all day particularly in my hip, which makes me realize how long I've been away from it.  Yoga is a funny thing for me - kind of like running - whenever I finish a yoga practice, I feel so good, so centered and much more relaxed and I think "I should do this ALL the time!"  But of course, when the next time to do one rolls around, I think, no, I'm too tired or I have something better today.  Very strange. So I'm hoping I keep it up, because it does have a calming effect on me.

I was feeling motivated after yoga and I had planned to run at lunch, but I realized I had some extra time before work, knew I wouldn't be running far, and also knew that if I waited until lunch, I'd probably talk myself out of it.  So I threw on my running clothes and a fleece (it was in the thirties this am) and quick headed out the door. 

The run was a struggle, but it felt good to do it.  My wishful thinking set my clock at 26 minutes to keep on track with where I was before I left for Athens, but about four minutes into the run, I realized I'd be happy to make 15 minutes.  I pushed myself and did do 15 minutes, about 1.32 miles and an 11:21 pace, playing the Numb (encore) on repeat pretty much the whole way - it's my go-to motivation song.  I definitely felt like I was running faster than the 11:21 pace, but I'll get there...again.  It's frustrating to go back and forth, to lose motivation, and then see how much of my endurance I lose with it and any time I take off, but I felt good when I got home and reminded myself that that important thing was that I got moving today.  If I can keep that up, I'll be in good shape.  And I only have one short conference before the end of the year, so I'm hoping that I won't be able to give myself any excuses!  Plus, I do love my post-run hot shower when the weather is so chilly!