I am constantly reading articles on blogs and in magazines on one's debate on running with or without music. Here's my thought on it....WHY would I punish myself and be stuck listening to my heavy Darth Vader breath and the monotonous thudding of my own feet? Why not skip, dance and head-bob through my run with tunes that will motivate me, push me, challenge me and cheer for me all at the same time? I am guilty of singing LOUD on a lonely desolate street when a great song comes on, sometimes I even play a little air guitar....doesn't everyone do that? No? Er, ok then...
So here's how my run when down this lovely Saturday morning. I checked my beloved iPod last night in my pre-run ritual before going to bed. Full battery in the trusty iPod, check. Garmin plugged into charger, check. Blistex SPF30, 1 stick of gum, sunglasses, 2 Shot Bloks, and Body Glide lined up on my kitchen counter (so I'm slightly neurotic, whatevs), check. My outfit, shoes and socks lined up in my closet, check and double check. My neighbor and running buddy dropped off our frozen Gatorade's along on our route and we were off. We typically run the first 1 miles or so together, talking and warming up. Wade always takes off first and Kara and I plug along behind him. Today I hit the PLAY button on my trusty iPod and to my horror, I heard nothing. Silence. I think I screamed on the inside just a little bit. Of course, because it was 4:45am and dark I had to wait to get to a streetlight to see the blank screen.
KILL ME.
I have NEVER run without my iPod. Not even a mile. Not gonna lie, I freaked out a little bit and debated turning around and going back home like a big baby. So I pulled my head of out my ass, put my big girl pants and told myself "you'll be fine". And ya know what? I was FINE. I had some time to myself, just me and the empty streets. I actually watched the sun come up over the desert, and the hot air balloons slowing rising up with it. It was peaceful and serene for the most part. However, I got a little bored at times. I looked over my shoulder more than once thinking some creeper was behind me, only to discover it was my own feet pitter-pattering along the pavement. And oddly enough, I kept my headphones on. Why? Who knows, it made me feel complete or something nutso like that. I crossed paths my husband at mile 10 and begged him to give me his. And he did. Reason 1,760,252 that I love that man. He was listening to Justin Timberlake (uh huh) and the second that music hit my ears, I was off. I ran my 2 miles under 9:00/mile. Which for me at miles 10-12, is fast.
Moral of the story. Check your iPod that morning to make sure it has juice. And if it doesn't, it'll be alright.
Promise.
P.S. it wasn't my battery, it's just straight up dead. Perfect.
 |
| RIP (source) |
