Pain is a LOVE/HATE Relationship

"He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have might he increaseth in strength."

Isaiah 40:29

I wonder if the older I get the wimpier I get.
Pain is a LOVE/HATE relationship.

I have had some great runs this week. Lacey and I rocked out a 9:09min/mi 14 miler on the track and I followed that up with Claudia the following day with ANOTHER 14 miler @Indian Springs. I let Claudia drag my sorry butt the whole time. On our first loop, we were finishing our 8 miler up that stupid hill and I thought I would just walk it up, or maybe crawl up it. NO! NOT CLAUDIA, she decided to blaze her way up it like freaking sprinter. I let her go but was desperate to hold close to her. By the time I reached the top and was crossing the intersection I was hoping a car was coming to put me out of my misery!
My lungs were burning, my legs were applesauce. I was trying not to think about the fact that I had 6 miles to go!
Then I reminded myself. "HEY, this is what YOU NEED TO BE DOING!" I needed to be pushed, gently!
After that 8 miles, Claudia and I decided we should bring it down.
YEAH RIGHT, when I looked at our pace when we finished it was still a 9:30m/m. I was sore and felt every bit of it.
It is really amazing what our bodies are capable of doing.

As I get older, I am losing that loving feeling with my body. I am disappointed in it. I am hurting more. I am less tolerant of pain. I am irritated with the fact that no matter how healthy I eat, how much I work out, how much I do to be strong and healthy I am not getting the same results I did 5 years ago.
This week was another week of exhaustion. I managed to get through it without crawling back into bed though. I have bucked up and dug deep. My whole families been battling sickness and I am grateful I have not had to contend with that on top of being chronically tired.

Just when I think I am a big WUSS I review my training. I am not running as bad as I feel.
After my runs, I look at my digits and am super stoked at my finish. My start looks like a turtles crawl but my Finish is Solid.
That's my runs these days, It takes a couple, maybe even a few miles to warm up the engine but then I ready to go.
Today Jeff was waiting for me on our favorite TM's. I have been looking forward to our workout since he told me what we would be doing weeks ago.

THE WORKOUT
Our normal Progressive run on the TM. 5 miles. We converse for about 3 of the miles but as we increase our pace we decrease our conversation!
Head to the track for strides.
1lap cool down.
4 strides
1 lap cool down.
(YOU can Increase Your strides, this is just what we did. I actually wanted to run a couple more, they felt good..But I was taking the time to recover!

It felt lovely to "Open it up". The strides were just on the straight way. We walked the curves. It is shocking how your body will still have power to pick it up like that AFTER you have had a moderate run. It is all about proper recovery. This is something that Jeff continues to remind me. I don't take my recovery down enough, that is why I get gassed doing repeats or intervals.

"Our greatest danger in life is permitting the urgent things to crowd out the important." Charles E. Hummel

IT'S all about the RECOVERY.

Maybe it is getting older, being a little more seasoned, but I have learned a little bit in the Recovery Process. (remember, just because I have learned it, doesn't mean I am good at it)
When it comes to Running:
Recovery is instrumental in the healing process. It allows to feel pain in the process of growing stronger, faster. better. When we are progressively moving forward we struggle with Recovery because we get excited in the process, there is not much fun in the recovery stage. It is a stage that takes self discipline and faith.
When it comes to LIFE.
I think Recovery is equally as difficult. Life beats you up. The bills never quit coming, our jobs often display multiple levels of stress and our relationships are a petri dish of conflict resolution. Life doesn't present us with ideal opportunities to sit in "Time Out" and recover from the hurt, disappointments, unmet expectations or the daily struggles of life.
So we often do what we know what we do best; KEEP MOVING. And as we move forward, we continue to take on injury after injury never healing from the previous one and moving into the next one already handicapped.
I am so guilty of this.
I get hurt, I get angry, I get disappointed, I then snap at the kids, bark at the husband, isolate, or find myself discouraged then depressed. I am then no good to anyone, I am not even safe to myself.
Recovery to SELF is important.

1. Recognize when You are "injured"
2. Do some SELF INVENTORY, try to pinpoint what is the problem area. (H.A.L.T. Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired)
3. Pray/Meditate.
4. Address your problem area, or learn to Let Go and Let God.
5. Grieve. Grief is a real issue. We get to busy in life to take time to just "FEEL" our pain. The only way to move through grief is to MOVE through it. Pain is a LOVE/HATE relationship.

"So teach us to number out days, that we may apply out hearts into wisdom." Psalm 90:12

How do you do in Recovery?
Anita