5 Inspiring Things

Last week was, again, a tough one. My legs weren't quite as healed up as I'd thought, and fast kilometer repeats on Wednesday led to me barely being able to walk on Thursday morning. Three days off, lots of stretching, ice and Epsom salt baths, an active release treatment ... and now I'm back to feeling pretty decent. But it's been frustrating, and I am in need of some positivity. So, rather than complain today, I give you five things that are inspiring me to keep on trucking this week:

1) Need I Explain?

Don't worry, there's more here.

2) Unexpected generosity from random strangers.

I spent my Sunday at SAIL, a giant outdoors store, fundraising with the Team in Training folks. We stood at the cash registers, helped bag purchases, and asked for donations for the cause. I was nervous about this - I don't particularly like bugging random people, especially to ask for money - but it was actually a lot of fun. And I was blown away by the number of people who gave. Many didn't seem to think twice about throwing a five-dollar bill in the box and wishing me luck with the marathon. Also blown away by the number of people who explained that they had been touched by blood cancers in some way. My legs were aching by the end of the day ... but it left me feeling heartened and motivated to continue fundraising.

3) This chick.

She makes me happy. And she runs like a badass. I hope to channel her next time I'm stiff and jittery before a race...

4) And this chick.

Lanni Marchant is a friend from law school who is one of the most talented runners I've ever met. She should be representing Canada at the Olympics in a couple weeks, but Athletic Canada's archaic rules have kept her home. So she's planning to show them what a mistake they made by running super-fast in Toronto on October 14th (read about it here). I have a strong feeling she'll do it. And it just happens to be the same day as my marathon ... so I will be channeling her (running WAY faster than me) that morning.

5) AND, of course, this chick.

Rachel is recovering from her bone marrow transplant - so send lots of good vibes and prayers her way. If I ever need any running-related inspiration, she is certainly a good bet ... check out this post from her blog, for instance.

Week 5 Recap:

M: off day - Kundalini yoga class
TU: 10k + CXWorx core class
W: 10k (4k hard ... stopped due to pain)
TH: BodyPump
F: off - easy bike
SA: off - easy elliptical and core
SU: 21k

Week total: approx. 41k