Being Flexible for February

You may know I am a big fan of yoga.  I try to make it a regular part of my weekly workouts to improve my mental focus, balance and flexibility.  And while it’s fun to be bendy and make myself into a pretzel, I recently found a few new ways to test my flexibility.

Hilly roads on the sides of mountains, with nothing for a shoulder, except a white line.  I thought about it, but after seeing a few runners attempt it, I was confident it was not a good idea.  So, for an entire week I woke up and did yoga and some strength training on the patio of our villa.  OK, so it wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t running.

I didn’t want vacation to end, but I looked forward to getting home for my Saturday long run with the Alzheimer’s team.  Until Thursday, when the predictions for snow arriving in Boston Friday turned into predictions for a blizzard.

We made it to Miami and were rebooked on a flight to Boston Monday morning.

Again, a test of my ability to be flexible.  The plan was to return Friday to have the weekend to unpack, do laundry, go grocery shopping…get settled after being away for a week.  While Miami for 3 days was not part of the vacation plan, it wasn’t so bad.  And I’m glad I was able to realize this then, and not just in retrospect.  I had great company, the weather was better than it was back in New England, and I finally got to go for a few runs in shorts!

I didn’t however go for my long run.  So after I returned Monday afternoon to Boston, unpacked, and shoveled my car out, I hit the treadmill for 14.5 miles.  Three miles in my iPod died. (Oh, not my real iPod, I lost that on the plane.  This was my classic iPod mini, complete with playlists circa 2006.)  But I did it.

So far, February has tested my flexibility in a few ways.  I have rolled with the punches for the most part and am pretty proud of myself for the outcomes.  I may have wanted to use a different “F” word a few times, but instead, maybe this was all part of my training to get to the finish line on April 15th.