Days you’ve just got to run

Sunday afternoon, I opened the door to head out for my first post-half-marathon run and it was raining. I debated for only a few minutes before stepping out into the rain because a) that makes the miles count twice, right? and b) it’s Mother’s Day – I’ve just got to run on Mother’s Day. Somehow, I’ve established this little list in my head of running holidays, where I have this visceral pull to run.

I confess I’d rather run in rain than the humidity that comes after rain any day!

– Mother’s Day (clearly): So much of my running is tied into being a mom, in that it makes me a better mom (healthier, more patient) and from the real sense of pride I get in being a good role model for O.  I know and O knows that part of what I want to do on “my” day is run. (Now that I think about it, last year I headed out in a storm too.) It felt like a real celebration of my mother-runner status this week to hear Sarah and Dimity describe my race report from the No Limits challenge on their podcast this week. It was so cool to hear women I respect so much for building the fantastic Another Mother Runner community cheer me on for my kick ass mental finish in Lincoln. 🙂 That was a great Mother’s Day gift!

– My birthday: This is tied not so much to the fact that it is my birthday and another “me” day and more to the fact that my weight loss anniversary, in starting Weight Watchers and hitting my goal weight, are also tied to that day. Running on the anniversary of the day I made that scary first step to take control of my weight and my health reminds me that I have the power to continue making those good choices every day.

– My run-i-versary: Seriously, at least once a week I look back and am amazed that I decided to head out and run that first hot August day, with bad shoes and an even worse sports bra. That chick was tough. 🙂 And slightly nuts. That marks a huge starting point for me, into something that has become a huge part of my daily life. I still don’t completely understand what prompted me to head out that first day but I’m grateful.

– New Years Day: This is two fold. Of course, I want to start the New Year on a healthy foot, but this run is also in celebration of my very first race. I still remember how nervous I was on the bus from the gym to the race start for the first Commitment Day 5K here in Omaha. I learned a lot from that experience and couldn’t quite believe when it was over that I’d really just run a race.

– Patriots Day/Boston Marathon Day: Before I started running, I’ll confess that I wasn’t even really aware the Boston Marathon was a thing. The day of the bombings, which happened to be the first Boston Marathon since I’d started running and therefore the first I was conscious of, was the day I first realized that I identified as a runner. It didn’t matter that I’d likely never run Boston with my not-so-speedy legs. Those were my people and I felt so violated by something that occurred hundreds of miles away. That was the day I realized that we’re all runners, no matter our speed, and its this amazing family I had no idea existed until I joined it. Now I feel the need to get at least a few miles in every Patriots Day to run in solidarity with the thousands in Boston that Monday.

No matter the weather, no matter what else is going on, on the these days I have to lace up. Do you have certain days each year that you just have to run?

This week’s Tuesdays on the Run topic is running hacks, of which I have none so I’m really looking forward to checking out the rest of the posts in the link-up and learning some new things. Be sure to head over to April, Patty and Erika to check out their tips and as always, ladies, thanks for hosting!

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