Rain, Rain, Run Anyway

And I'm back! I know you missed me- it's okay. I missed y'all too. :)
Today was my long run day and I had to do 50 minutes. I was a bit nervous, but determined to complete this run. However, when I woke up this morning, it was a gray and rainy day out. There was a thick fog rolling around but it wasn't too chilly, and when I left to go running, it wasn't raining too hard either. That changed rather quickly.

I had mapped out a decent run the night before. I planned on running outside because trying to run 50 minutes on the treadmill is boring: All I do is watch the clock countdown how much time I have left to go. So, I went to the nearby park and decided to do a few mile laps. It was only slightly misting as I warmed up and then started my run- a light sprinkling of rain that was actually rather refreshing. Then all of a sudden, in the middle of my first lap, the sky opened up and POURED down upon me. It didn't deter me though, I continued running. The rain fell hard through all the rest of mile 1 and mile 2, as I reached the half way point of mile 3, it shifted back to a light sprinkle again.

In the meantime, I was completely and utterly soaked through- but the odd thing was, I LOVED EVERY SINGLE MINUTE OF IT! Honest! I was so energized about my run, I probably could have done another 2 miles, but I didn't. I stopped solely because I didn't want to overdo myself and then end up falling a step behind in my training. I am celebrating today because when I ran the 5k in December, it was pouring rain then as well, and those were the longest 3 miles of my life. I was exhausted and winded when I crossed the finish line and all I wanted to do was fall over. But today, I ran almost the exact same distance and felt perfectly fine afterward. I mean, I wanted to RUN MORE! I know I've said it before, but I'm pretty sure I've crossed over into the dark side and there is no turning back.

Also, Chelsea was telling me about the Diva Half-Marathon in Long Island. It's on Oct 2nd, which is 2 weeks before the ING Half I'm planning on running. She said at the last mile marker, they hand out tiaras and feather boas, and when you cross the finish line you are handed your medal (also in the shape of a tiara) by a shirtless fireman. Ummm... I think I may have to do this race as well. This first one will be for fun and the one on Oct 15th will be for charity. Good plan, right?