Make A Wish

Yesterday was my 53rd birthday and I started my day with a quick run outside followed by a 40 minute glute workout on the elliptical.

Sure, I could have stayed in bed instead of getting up and out at 7:30 but I was so happy to start off my 54th year doing what I so enjoy doing and that is running. It was my third run of the week and I was going to keep it on the shorter side but push a bit more with effort and intensity…a shakeout run, if you will. I have to say…I felt so good as I started off on my run, thinking about how I was celebrating my birthday, running through the streets of Jerusalem and grateful that I have made my health a priority.

I didn’t actually make a wish or blow out any candles yesterday but I did think about what I want to accomplish and see to fruition in the year ahead. In past years…maybe not for a birthday wish but at a point where I had to think about a specific goal, I would probably say I want to drop X pounds and I want to wear a smaller size. Sure, those are all things I wouldn’t mind happening but I have so much more that I want to see happen than a physical reward or goal. I want to work on my strength and endurance with running but I am not making it as much about a certain pace or finishing a race at a certain time. Jeff introduced me to trail running a little over two years ago and I have really come to prefer it to road racing. There is something about running on the trails and being so close to nature and removing yourself from what goes on in ’real’ life…it’s hard to describe but I feel it each and every time I go out on a run. I don’t pay attention to the time that has passed or how far I’ve run…I leave it to Jeff to keep track of all of that as I focus on carefully getting through the trails while at the same time, being aware of what’s around me.

I don’t know if I will actually do a trail half marathon in the coming year but I do have it as a goal that I want to accomplish at some point in the near future. For this next year, I just want to work on getting farther and maybe, just maybe, a little faster and find some new trails beyond the metroparks we’ve frequented and enjoyed. I could have never envisioned myself doing this when I was 23 or 33 or even 43 but 53 is the year of being open to possibilities and adventures!