Sunday, March 22, 2009

We Run Together

Twice this week I had the opportunity to run with two different people.
It was Tuesday or Wednesday and the weather was so great and I had already planned to run during lunch that day. My coworker and I were talking about the weather and I teasingly said to him, "Why don't you come running with me, then?" Expecting to be rejected. But instead he said, "Let's do it. Wanna go at 11?"
Shit.
I was nervous about running with him. I was thinking that because he's a guy and he runs on the treadmill nearly everyday, he was probably a lot faster than I was.
But I had planned on doing a speed run so I was happy for the challenge.
He did start off fast. I think he was digging the sunshine (a far fetch from the fluorescent lights of the gym). But eventually, he slowed down. And we ran at a pace that I could deal with for a longer time.
Usually, I like to really open up at the end of a run. I mean bear down, dig deep, sprint as much as you can. But I didn't want to say that to my coworker, because he seemed to have been struggling.
But the last 400 meters or so, he said, "Come on, let's run fast!!" Imagine my glee!

The second run I did was with another coworker. She had also been a treadmiller for the whole winter. But she usually runs 6-7 miles so I was nervous about running with her too.
We decided to run at McDowell Grove Park in Warrenville.
It was a great run.
I really liked this run because we ran through the woods, around a pond, under Diehl Rd., and I-88.
It's a good trail because it has a lot of hills. And I love hills for the challenge.
The run came to about 4 miles total. My friend was also not used to running outside so we both did a slow and steady pace. I enjoyed this pace because it gave me a chance to check out the park and its wildlife. I didn't have my camera with me but here is a shot I found.




This shot was done by Jim Frazier in the summer so our run was not nearly as green as this. But what you may be able to see is that there is no pavement. You are running on dirt. That's it. Dirt. So it really had that rustic feel. I could easily forget that I was close to a major interstate.



After the run I finally went to Naperville Running Company to buy my new shoes!

By 11 am, downtown Naperville was bustling with shoppers. And the running company was no different. The shop was already teeming with runners looking at pamphlets, trying on shoes and talking to the sales people about the best fit. I got an encouraging smile from a worker (probably because I was still wearing my running gear) as I browsed through the running clothes.
I convinced myself not to buy anything extra this time and limped to the cash register. My shoes were already on hold and I got a 10% discount (that's $10.00 off my shoes) for being a member. I will probably go back to get my Nike+ sensor.

I did a short and fast run today in my new shoes. They felt really great. My feet were being controlled. And that is a good thing. I wasn't scared to kick back more because I knew that the landing would be better. I can't wait to see whether my knees improve.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sounds awesome! I'm waiting for the "leisure" part to kick in. I'm still in the new phase so it's enjoyable, but that greatly....yet. I will get there. Thanks for the inspiration. I do not kid when I say that you have inspired me. :)

Dottie said...

You make running sound so fun! Cool that you got co-workers off treadmills and into the sunshine :) I almost kinda miss it. Greg keeps asking me to go with him; maybe I should take him up on it one of these days. I don't want to push my knees too hard since I need them to get me around on my bike, but I sometimes miss running. After over a year of not running, it would probably be pretty painful.