Yesterday, I ran with a running group in Brunswick. I’d gone to Brunswick to run that route a few times before with another friend, Jen, but I’d never gone early enough to meet with the group (leaving the house at 7:15 a.m. on a Saturday … groan!). Yesterday, I finally made it, and I ran 5 miles … with people!
I really needed that. Running in the dark/cold has become really a chore the past week. Even a short 5-miler, getting to know new people, that was a pick-me-up.
I’m still kinda slow, so I teamed up with some people who were running a shorter route, and I knew through Jen. I could be pushed for 5 miles, but I don’t know about 10.
So runners that I have met, they tend to all be a bit older than me. Actually, almost everyone I know around here is older than me, so that’s not unusual at all. So the group of runners I was with were talking about their kids, and one of them said, “my kid are probably almost as old as you are, Pattie.” And she listed her kids ages — early/mid 30s — and I simultaneously felt:
- I’m going to run forever, because there is no way she looks old enough to have kids that old,
- Do I really look that old? REALLY?
- I need to run faster.
I’m 25. I’m going to be 25 for at LEAST another 3 days. I’m still in my mid-20s! I’m still young! I can’t look like I’m 35 …
I got my ass in gear and passed a few people and came in at 5.15 miles at a 10:19 pace, 2 minutes per mile better than I did the day before. Oh, the power of motivation.