Partial FAIL, and it's only day 2!

It's only a partial fail because I did get in 12 miles (12.16 to be exact!). However, I didn't get started until after 8am, which is the fail part. I could justify it by saying I have the day off, it's no big deal, the weather's not too hot, etc...but the bottom line is that I let myself be lazy again. Here's the truth of it: I did not set my alarm last night because I knew if I did I would be tempted to snooze it this morning, and no snooze button is part of my new year's resolution. So I didn't want to set myself up for failure. I knew that the dogs would wake me up sometime between 5:30 and 6:30. However, I also knew that I would likely go right back to bed after letting them out. Which is exactly what happened. And I knew that in going back to bed I would not automatically get up with first light, it would likely be 7:30 before I climbed out of the comfort of snuggling with the chihuahuas. Alas, it was 7:39. Once it gets close to 8am, a litany of excuses NOT to go running begin to build in the back of my mind. I start to get hungry at 8:00. By the time I'm done running it's so late in the morning. I have to feed the dogs. I have to make the coffee. Blah, blah, blah. But since this blog on day 2 is keeping me honest (even if no one reads it, it's out there), so I did feed the dogs, I did not make the coffee (Brian was not too happy about that one), and Fredo and I set off for 12 miles.

I only have a couple of short things to say about the run...after all, the running part will come, it's the motivation part that this blog is all about...it was tough, as I knew it would be due to my recent lack of training. My legs were a little fatigued, I had some foot and ankle aches and pains, but I did it. 12.16 miles in 1:52:48, about a 9:17 pace, which is just a tad slower than I would like. So on to the positives.

It was a beautiful morning, once again, although quite windy. It was the farthest I've run in my minimalist shoes, and so far, so good. I have no idea at what mileage they will start to hurt my feet, due to the lack of cushioning, but they haven't yet. I saw a bald eagle, a wood stork taking flight from the scrub bush, and of course the usual osprey and vultures. I also ran with music today, which is not normal for me but was a nice change of pace. And at mile 8 or so I decided to go off-road for about a mile onto some dirt (well, sand, since this is Florida) trails in Gemini Springs. Fredo and I both really enjoyed that change.

Speaking of Fredo, he amazes me. When I slack off in training it means he doesn't get to run, either. So yesterday was his first 6 mile run in a couple weeks, and he did great but was really sacked out in the afternoon. Today he didn't skip a beat and was my little Energizer Bunny Dog for 12 miles. Since we typically run the same routes, he knows when a turn is coming up. But yesterday I threw him for a loop at one point because I went a different way. All it takes is a little flick of the wrist with his leash and I can redirect him with ease. But he is so smart, because this morning, as we neared that intersection from yesterday, he slowed his pace a bit and started glancing back at me as if to ask, "Which way today, Human?" He is simply awesome.

So day 2, started bad, ended good, onto the rest of my day. (Not all of my posts will be this long and detailed of course, but since I have the day off I'm sharing.)