Let’s talk about how much I didn’t want to run this morning. And how much I didn’t want to get out of bed early enough to get my run in before mentoring. And how many times I didn’t run this week when I should have.

I should have been out the door of my apartment by 8 am. I got out of my door at 9 am. First, I couldn’t make myself get out of bed. My head hurt. My stomach was a little queasy. My knee still isn’t feeling great. Every excuse…and those excuses were almost enough. Almost.

When I finally did get out the door, I knew it was going to be rough. I was not going to have time to do any walking. And nine miles with no walking when my longest run this round of training was a six miler three weeks ago was not going to be easy. Or fun.

I warmed up on my way to Central Park. My plan was to do two laps around the Reservoir and then the six mile loop. I headed up to the Reservoir which took a little bit of time because the way up was super icy only to discover that the trail around it was basically a skating rink. Not sure why I thought it might not be, but 10 minutes into my run, I had yet to actually do any running. The minutes were ticking away. New plan: the six mile Central Park Loop and then I’d figure it out. I had six miles to think about it. Plenty of time.

The first three miles of the run were great. I was pacing a little faster than I had anticipated. Nothing was hurting. It wasn’t too cold. And then, when I hit mile four and had yet to see a street vendor with water, I started to worry a little. I hadn’t brought any water with me, just money, because there are always street vendors and that way I don’t have to carry it. But, just as I was thinking I would have to take a little detour to find a bodega, I saw a vendor on the horizon. I took a quick break to buy water and then allowed myself a little walking time to drink some and down two Shot Blocks. And then, I was off again.

The rest of the loop went off without a hitch. I mean, there were a couple of hills that made me want to scream and, at one point, I thought I was going to puke (too much water too fast), but then everything balanced out and I was fine. I decided I would just do the last three miles on CPW, so when I finished the loop, I headed south again. I was amazed to discover that I was still pacing at my goal pace. Mile seven was quick. Mile eight my feet were starting to hurt, so I allowed myself to walk a quarter of it. And then, I was back running for the last mile.

I cooled down on my way home. Because of my late start, I was only going to have 30 minutes to shower and get out the door–no time to eat, which is never a good idea after running that distance–so I grabbed a chocolate milk on my way home and chugged it. Some of you might think that’s weird (I did too the first time it was given out at the end of a race), but it really is a perfect recovery drink; carbs, protein, a little fat…exactly what I needed.

I got home and discovered the pain in my feet was a result of a couple of blisters. With no time to deal with those, I was grateful for my oh-so-comfy Uggs to throw on. I rushed out the door to get to mentoring, only to discover that my trains weren’t running…so I ended up being an hour late anyway. It’s a good thing I didn’t know that my trains weren’t going to be running, or I probably wouldn’t have gone running, but I’m so glad I did.

I’ve said it before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again. There is nothing like running that helps me forget all my stupid drama, all of body issues, and just appreciate how great my life is. And I just don’t think that starting my Saturday mornings with a run through Central Park will ever get old. Seriously. What a fun life I have!

Today’s top songs:

• Dancing in Heaven – Q-Feel
• Stereo Love – Edward Maya & Vika Jigulina
• Alors on danse – Stromae
• Teenage Dream – Glee Cast
• Feel It In My Bones (feat. Tegan and Sara) – Tiesto
• Not Broken – Goo Goo Dolls
• Sick – The Lovemakers
• Mercy – Duffy
• Superstar (feat. Matthew Santos) – Lupe Fiasco
• S&M – Rihanna (p.s. in case you didn’t get it from the title, this song is super trashy)
• I Like It (feat. Pitbull) – Enrique Iglesia
• Lollipop (Candyman) – Aqua