20 down!

Although I have zero comments on any of my blog posts, which makes me feel a little pathetic for updating it, several of you have mentioned to me that you have actually been reading it! Which makes me OK about updating it anyway :)

well, last weekend was great for running. although i got to raleigh 15 min late last saturday and missed my running group (start time was 6.30 am), it turned out for the best. I was doing a 20-miler, and i could save my energy by not talking, and could run at my own (painfully slow!) pace.
It was a beautiful day outside and a majority of my run was done on a gorgeous lakeside trail.
Running outside can be so awesome. I didn't have too much time to contemplate the beauty, though-- the course I was on had some of the steepest hills I have ever come across!! So I had to concentrate on huffing and puffing my way up them.

And many hours later, I actually finished. . .twenty miles. I couldn't believe it in a sense.
Can't believe that the girl who struggled to run/walk for 15 minutes in high school gym class, could actually run 20 miles at one time, 10 years later. Praise God!

The last 2 miles, i have to say what got me through was Donnie McClurkin. I don't know what it is about his version of 'Days of Elijah' and running. . .when I'm on the treadmill, that song will take me from a 9 min pace to a 7:30 pace w/o even thinking about it. I just get so excited! And at mile 19 last weekend, it put a smile on my face even though my knees and feet were definitely getting sore. I actually started to sing out loud at one point. (Bad idea).
Other joy-inspiring songs: Third Day's Mountain of God. . .that has gotten me through some rough patches of running too. Especially the bridge:
'But of all I've had, what I've posessed, nothing can quite compare-- to what's in front of me. . .what's in front of me. ..'

Well, it is WAY past my bedtime especially since I am doing my weekend run tommorrow (Sunday) as opposed to this morning. I'm tapering down; only 12 miles tommorrow. I'm actually looking forward to it!