Monday, Rainy Monday

It took me longer than I thought it would to get back to this, and while my "Apology for not writing in so long/What I've been up to" post is still coming, I wanted to write a quick note about what a great day I had today.

A little background. I've been running (well, walking/jogging, if we're all being honest) at least 5 times a week around a lake nearby my house for the past few weeks. I figured that from my front door, around the lake, and back to my front door was about 4 miles. When I first started, it took 1 hour and 25 minutes. Slow, I know, but if I was fit, I wouldn't be writing a blog about losing weight, would I? Over the past two weeks, I had gotten it down to 1 hour and 2 minutes, with my next goal to get it under one hour.

Today, like most Mondays, was a rough day at work and by the time I got home, it was really gray and slightly drizzling. I had no desire to go running at all, ready to just sit down and watch something that required zero brain power. After some internal debate, I decided that I needed to go. If I said no today, I would have an excuse next time to not exercise. And excuses was one of the reasons I am already the size that I am. So, I changed into my shorts and a hoodie (it was still drizzling a bit) and put on my running shoes. Fully planning on it being miserable, I decided that I was just going to walk the route today.

Stepping out into the dusk, my mood switched almost instantly. I immediately felt good. The air was crisp and the misting rain beaded on my face. Feeling a slight boost in energy, I decided to put in a little effort as I started the 4 mile trek. As I went on, I felt better and better, pushing just a little more every few minutes. Then, about a third of the way around the lake, it started to rain like the dickens. Out of nowhere, it was suddenly as close to a downpour as you could get without actually calling it a downpour. The few brave souls that were also out at the lake scattered like rabbits. I was about to turn around myself when I remembered the reason I came out. If I stopped then, I would have an excuse to stop next time. So I kept going through the pouring rain.

There I was. The lone soldier. My hoodie weighed about 30 lbs more due to soaking in the water. AC/DC blasting through my iPod. Muscles rippling in the cold wind. Focus beyond what mortal men are capable of. One Man. One Desire. Coming this summer from Paramount Pictures.

I'm done.

Anyway, everything about the situation said that I should be miserable, but as weird as this sounds, I realized that I was not just enjoying it, but that I was having the time of my life. I just felt GOOD to be out there, soaked through all my clothing, and running my tired, out of shape heart out. I stopped to enjoy the scene, rain falling on the lake with Flogging Molly playing quite loudly in my earphones (Within a Mile of Home - Currently the most played song on my iPod). I felt better than I had in a long time. I pushed hard the rest of the way home, loving every step. By the time I got back to my house, the rain had pulled back into a drizzle.

End of the day, it's amazing how a quick exercise can change your mood. I ending up finishing at 55:34, completing my goal under the hour mark as well as beating my previous record by 7 minutes. But the best part about this whole thing is that next time, I won't have an excuse to not go exercise.