All Downhill From Here

Last night we dropped the kids off at the always-helpful inlaws and went to Hubby’s work Christmas Party. I had a couple of drinks before dinner, but knew I had a long run this morning, so after dinner I became the designated driver and hydrated with water the rest of the evening. Dinner was decent, and the veggies weren’t overcooked, so that was a bonus. I was terribly disappointed that amongst the 5 or 6 dessert choices, not a single one had chocolate! We didn’t dance much – Hubby begs off with his chronically sore knees, but we did manage to have some fun during the “Boogie Woogie Choo Choo Train”.

I met up with Linda and Yolanda a little after 9 a.m. down by the river not far from Edworthy Park. The sun was shining, it was about 8C/46F with a slight breeze, and I wore leggings and a long sleeved tech shirt. I hadn’t been able to locate my Bodyglide this morning, but oh well, I’d be fine, right?

We headed off towards Crowchild bridge first, and looped back on the South side of the river on the paved path below the Douglas Fir trail. I set my watch for 10/1 s, and we pretty much stuck to the program. There was some ice covering the paved path on the shady South side, so we walked over those patches. It was great to visit and take our time being together.

As we crossed over the river at the West end of our loop we heard Krista calling us from behind. She’d been sprinting to catch up to us before she finished her run. She introduced us to her work buddy, Brenda, and then walked and ran with us back to our cars at the bottom of 37 St. while I munched on a Nutrigrain bar. We said good bye to Linda and Yolanda, and then turned around to go back to Krista’s car, taking me on a repeat of the loop I’d just done, only in reverse.

After seeing Krista off I stopped for a bathroom break and realized that I really, really should have found that Bodyglide earlier, but there was nothing for it now, I would just have to deal with it. Other than some mild discomfort I rather enjoyed the second loop. I ended up running into a fairly stiff Westerly breeze in the last 2 km, and my feet trod less lightly than I would have liked towards the end. I finished in fine form though, gently lowered my rear into the car, and drove over to the inlaws to retrieve my offspring.

Now that I’m home, carefully showered with an omelette in my tummy, I’m feeling pretty good. I think my body is getting quite used to regularly running this distance (15-16km). It ‘s kind of nice to have that knowlege tucked into the back of my brain, but it’s time to increase it a smidge, I think.