Marathon training means planning several “shorter” runs
during the week and one long run on the weekend, which makes it REALLY hard to
train on top of weekend travel and/or socializing. I’ve been pretty good at
getting my weekend miles in regardless; I love running in new places, so that
definitely helps when I’m out of town.
This weekend I spent Saturday in New Braunfels floating the
Comal River with friends, which seems like a relaxing way to spend the day, but
I was just EXHAUSTED when I woke Sunday and had to scrap my long run entirely.
I knew I couldn’t run and still have the energy to safely drive home 4 hours
alone.
I was actually pretty disappointed to skip the run, even
though I’d been dreading the hills in San Marcos. After I packed up, I went to
the trailhead near our lodging anyway to check out the Spring Lake Nature Preserve
where I’d been planning to run.
It was fantastic! At first I was sad to have missed out on
running such lovely, shaded dirt trails, but when two deer ran across my path,
I realized that hiking it was a better choice. Running would require keeping my
eyes glued to the ground to avoid tripping over rocks, but hiking gave me the
chance to see so much more and take pictures. I saw birds and butterflies and
wildflowers and even an ocelot!
There was no cell phone reception and no other people in the
area for nearly an hour. The morning was humid and warm but not unpleasant
until just before I left. As I hiked back to the trail head, I saw a deer
across a clearing in the trees, and we stared at one another for several long
moments.
After an awful week of news, my time spent solitary in the quiet
magic of nature was deeply cathartic.
This early in training, I can always run another day.
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