What You Need

Instead of asking yourself what the world needs,
ask yourself what makes you come alive,
and then go do that.
Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
– Howard Thurman

Today I ran the best I have ever run. I didn’t run further than I’ve ever run before but today something just clicked for me and I had some revelations. Here’s what I thought of:

It doesn’t matter how far you run, how fast you run, how many calories you burn or who you beat. It’s about the feeling of wind blowing on the back of your neck and about feeling completely and totally alive. Today when I ran I didn’t focus on distance or speed…I ran to get back to why I run in the first place—for the joy of it and the great feeling it brings me. It was definitely the most enjoyable run I’ve ever had, and my legs felt strong and light even though the thermostat read 91 degrees! I let my mind get away from all of it. Away from my sleepless night, away from school, away from the heat, the stress and any issues that might have been lingering. I just let them all go. And I ran.

Surprisingly and totally on accident, I had my best time yet. I ran 2 1/2 miles in 20 minutes and then walked for about ten minutes or so to cool down and just enjoy the natural surroundings. I ran around Lake Eola in downtown Orlando and it was absolutely gorgeous. The lake is roughly about a mile around so it was easy to count my mileage that way. I couldn’t resist taking some pictures afterwards because it really was so gorgeous. After my run when I was driving home (and sitting in I4 traffic), I felt totally peaceful and at ease. This is why I run.

(these swans are actually little boats you can ride around in!)

Here are my stats:

Time: 32.22

Duration: about 3 miles or so (I ran 2 1/2 in 20 minutes then just walked and snapped some pictures for the next 12 minutes)

Average Heart Rate: 178

Max Heart Rate: 208 (it was HOT!)

Calories: 347

Another reason I especially loved my run today was that I could feel myself getting stronger and better. I’ve never considered myself a great runner or anything but I could feel like legs getting stronger and my endurance going up. It’s amazing, really—I have no more leg pain at all since reading Chi Running cover to cover and from wearing orthotics 24/7.

Before my run I snacked on half a almond butter & jam sammie with a 90 calorie pack of barney butter and bonne maman raspberry preserves:

And when I got home, I made a quick dinner to refuel! I had been dying to try these ever since I found them at Target the other day:

They did not disappoint!!!!!! I LOVED THESE! They were the perfect chew, the right amount of spice and were very filling! I sandwiched mine between a Rudi’s Whole Wheat english muffin (a new find but not as good as Ezekiel muffins) and used a slice of reduced fat cheddar, ketchup and plenty of texas pete.

I also had a huge spinach salad with a carrot and half a cucumber

And a perfectly ripe plum

It was a great little din-din. But then I started feeling a little snackie and since I haven’t baked for about three weeks (which is a record for me!), I set to the kitchen with a special recipe in mind—-Tina’s Oatmeal Raisin Bars! I had been salivating ever since I saw the recipe on her blog and knew I needed to try them, asap. I made a few substitutions—-I used all brown sugar and instead of raisins I used dark chocolate chips. 😉 The recipe made 10 perfect little bars, each at about 215 calories. The perfect sweet treat!

These were to die for. AMAAAAZING!!!! I’m a spaz and can never wait until anything completely cools to cut into it, so they kind of fell apart but still tasted phenomenal!

And here’s my wine fact for the day: Washington State and Bordeaux, France are on the same line of latitude, therefore the sun hits the grapes in the vineyards at the same angle. This is why great Merlots and Cabernet Sauvingons hail from these two places! I thought that was really really interesting!

I’m all set for a relaxing night of reading….hopefully I will sleep better tonight!

ps–And for everyone that hasn’t already or does not know, Lindsay (aka the Happy Herbivore) has finally finished her cookbook. Buy it here!