This begins one of my favorite times of the year…Coaching Team 12.4 runners…the spring weather is an added bonus!! Almost every Saturday, I show up early and run on my own as a warm-up before running the scheduled distance for the Team 12.4 runners. This last Saturday morning, Team 12.4 met at Lloyd Kurtz Park for their first 4 mile run. During my warm-up, I decided to run from Lloyd Kurtz Park to Ada Hayden, run the figure 8 through the park and run back to the park. This gave me about 5 miles prior to meeting up with the rest of the group. During this portion of my run, I was in my own head and really able to focus on the purpose of this run. Despite the light drizzle and the 40 degree temperatures, this was sure to be an amazing run!!
Mental training became a key focus during the first 5 miles of my run. Affirmations…I can/will handle any obstacle that comes my way…I eat hills for breakfast…I am strong…I am tough…I experience great joy when I run…I am at peace when I run. Mantra…Think strong, be strong, finish strong. Visualization…I see myself focused on my goal while running…I see myself finishing pain free, strong, and confident. This got me thinking about “Pride” from the movie Cool Runnings:
While running in solitude, I reconnected with nature and encountered lots of wildlife…red-winged black birds, robins, deer (right on the path and they didn’t move when I ran past them), geese, mallards, trout (there was a man fishing under the bridge I ran over who caught one just as I was passing overhead), a stray cat, squirrels, rabbits…so peaceful…
What will I encounter tomorrow morning while running in solitude??? Nature…peace…focus…time for mental training…the possibilities are endless!!
PushMyLimits 
Love this post. The solitude of running is part of its big appeal to me, so learning to run with a group now is part of my new challenge. This reminds me how much our individual personalities come out in our running.
My favorite run is Saturday mornings early when I start in the dark and wake the sun up. All the little critters wake up with it. It’s really peaceful and refreshing. I think I’ll do that run tomorrow. 🙂
I miss running so much, and get a bit jealous reading about everyone’s posts about their great runs. When I was healthy and not dealing with my chronic illnesses Team 12.4 was one of the BEST things I did for ME!!! You are so awesome, and I enjoy hearing about your journeys.
It is good to run in solitude when we need peace, and good to run with (a) friend(s) when we need to chat. Isn’t it great that we can do both?