Endorphin Rush

It's been a month since our trip and it seems like a year. I've had many moments since our return where I've thought about updating the blog with "post-run comments", but haven't quite made the time. I think part of it is feeling like there hasn't been anything quite as "big" to write about. Just lots of day to day details. But, as I look back on the month, I realized that "the details" have something to say and somehow tie it all together.

I remember the details. The routes, the scenery, the people we met; all of it. This might not seem strange. But, I don't usually remember the details like I did those of our trip to Marin despite being a fairly detailed oriented human in the way I approach most tasks. It's made me ask myself what it would take to "remember the details"? of my life. I think it would require moving at a less frenetic pace in general and making an effort to be more present wherever I am. My sense is that the former would facilitate the latter.

Endorphins are like crack (or what I assume addiction would look like). The first week back, I NEEDED TO RUN...FAR. My body just thought that was what I was supposed to do. And my head CRAVED the silence and quiet that running seems to offer. Being time constrained and goal oriented, I decided to run from our house in Eugene to Junction City where our son's baseball tournament was being held (about 16 miles north). IT WAS NOT THE SAME. It was to noisy. Keep in mind this should have been expected as I was not in Muir Woods but running adjacent to a rural highway. I got it done, but it wasn't fun. At about two miles out, I considered calling Mark to give me a lift on his way to the ball field. I don't do that. But, I got it done and my endorphin craving was abated for the moment.

Sleep is a good thing. Part of the reason the JC run was so hard had to do with how little sleep I'd offered my body since our return. I've read for a long time how critical sleep is to recovery. This was the first time I really saw the contrast so clearly. We got a solid 9-10 hours of sleep per night in Marin and weren't back a day before dropping back down to our typical 6-7 hour a night routine. I was amazed how little fatigue we experienced the day after each run while in Marin. And it was frustrating how crummy most runs were the first couple of weeks after we got back after. In making this observation, I noticed this contrast seems to also apply to the important details of life. More sleep seems to help me be a better mom, wife and friend. It made me wonder if the things keeping me up so late are really that important. Busy seems to be a way of life for most of us and I am certainly one of the poster children for this cause. But, it's starting to wear me out.

I found the trails again. I've craved trails since our return. The quiet; the challenge; the lack of concrete. Maybe I just want to have a sense that our escape hadn't ended. My friend HM helped me find the trails again last Thursday as we did an hour on Ridgeline, south of town. It was so great to combine the time with an opportunity to catch up such a great gal. Our lives tend to take us in different directions day to day and running is something we have in common. I love that. And I can almost keep up with her (okay, maybe not).

I have mixed feelings about whether or not I should continue to blog and if it should be running focused or what. I mean seriously - I'm not sure what I have to say is all that interesting. It's certainly not profound. And it actually feels like quite the cliche' to constantly be comparing running to life's ups and downs. For now it seems to work. However, if I get much further, I may have to go back to erinsexplanations.