Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Being Flexible (of mind and body)

There are riots in London, a devastating famine in the Horn of Africa, a quarter of my friends are unemployed, and we're about the commemorate the 10th Anniversary of this country's greatest national tragedy. 

Things are tough out there.  Sometimes I feel like I'm living in a world I don't recognize, a place that is foreign and unpredictable; in many ways, it is.  From your personal life to the global world, there are a lot of unknowns and free radicals out there (health pun).  This is why I try to stay flexible.  I'm not talking about stretching (although I am a HUGE fan as a result of my dance/gymnastics background, but that's for another post).  I'm talking about the day to day adjustments that you should NEED to make in life (especially if you are an amateur athlete/recreational runner/person leading a healthy lifestyle).

Yesterday I knocked out a lovely 6 miles before work.  It felt great, the weather was lovely, and I rocked the rest of the day.  I ate healthy and hydrated properly.  Last night I got into bed an hour later than usual, and was exhausted today.  I got out of bed, but decided to push my run for the day to this evening.  I took leisurely morning stroll and got a bagel (whole wheat with strawberry cream cheese, because 1) its DELICIOUS and 2) sometimes I want to eat something pink). 

At lunch I picked up a salad from Hale and Hearty since I didn't have any food in my apartment, but then I picked up a cookie from a corner deli (I was feeling mopey).  When I get home I'm going to plod out three sloooooow miles, I'll probably even do two of them at the gym, and I'll come back and have a bowl of whole grain pasta with sausage and peppers because that's all the food in my refrigerator.

It's ok.  I like to cut myself breaks.  I'm not the world's hardest worker or most dedicated individual, but I put my best into everyday.  Some days, that means I'm a rockstar employee and kick butt athelete; other days that means I need to organize my files because I don't have the brain power to think strategically, and I'll embrace couch-potato-hood the minute I get home. 

Rest, in life and running, is extremely important to a healthy mind and body.  That doesn't mean I can make excuses to get out of a long run or a avoid a big project, it means I have to be flexible.  I'll put my long run off a day and do an easy one in the meantime.  I'll work on the less taxing projects on my desk and put a focused effort into the tougher ones tomorrow. 

For me flexibility is a necessity.  Are you a hardliner when it comes to training, or do you cut yourself some wiggle room like me?

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