Tuesday

Monday I did a lot of walking, but was just taking it easy after a big Sunday.

Today I will run a little, probably on some dirt and probably up a hill. Easy.

There have been a few days recently where I actually have a killer work-out lined-up, but I don't end-up getting after it. Getting those kinds of things lined-up usually is not a big deal, especially since I have a little more free-time these days :(

When it's on a weekend, I definitely need to coordinate with the family.
I think as most people would agree, this is an important part of making a schedule work.
The busier, more ambitious the schedule, the more important it is to coordinate.

The words coordinate and schedule associate time. Making time for yourself
in the presence of others seems to amount to a simple look at a clock or calendar;
a few suggestions and compromises later and the time element seems to have been settled.

As we all know, time is not the only consideration. There are relationships involved. Work and family and friends. My family has proven lately to be the most sensitive part of my training.
I almost always make the time. As long as you give people a few days notice, or more, that is rarely an issue.

However, the emotional element of my training has given me a few hurdles lately that I might normally not have noticed in the past. Now, they are bigger than before, waving bigger red flags.

Bottom-line: I will not go for a run (as simple as that may sound) if there is an unresolved issue at home (I feel I can control these issues more than, say, the price of gas. I care more about the health of my family, I guess, than anything else). My wife and I have never been closer. We see eye-to-eye on almost everything. My point is simply that I don't want to run if something like that (an argument we're having, a job I haven't finished, a mis-communication exists) is weighing on me. More than ever, I have to be free out there (generally this happens on a bigger run) on the trail, cruising, loving that physical, mental and psychological exercise, which is part break, part mediation, which can be anything but a break: It's a time to grow.

If there is something on the home front holding me back, I prefer to hold off on the workout until I have discussed the matter and know we have reached a clear and reasonable resolution, even if that means talking about it further.

My conscience has become a matter of security and freedom.

Since we always do find resolution and I can then proceed to the trail, should I just trust that success we have and go for the run knowing we'll work on it later? Maybe. But my gut, which i trust religiously, says no. Get in an even better place before the work.

I could relate this to recovery. There's "damaged tissue," or "sore muscles" that need attention. One has to fully recover for the subsequent work to be meaningful or even enjoyable.

For me.