I think anyone who has ever tried to accomplish something significant in their lives can say that there are many speed bumps along the way. When it comes to running – for me, winter is a big one. I have been following along with a fairly strict training plan in preparation for the Bluenose Marathon in May and on Sunday morning, when I woke to do my weekly long run, absolutely everything went wrong.

I set my alarm for 6:30am (which is super early for a Sunday morning in the dead of winter) and headed to the kitchen where I ate a carb-heavy breakfast of oatmeal and an english muffin in preparation for the 17.5km distance ahead of me. I bundled up in my new Running Room RX winter tights (the windproof panels on the thighs are so worth the money!), grabbed my earphones and headed out the door feeling rather upbeat about what I was going to accomplish before most people were even awake. It was all down hill from there.

I got about 5 minutes from home when I realized that I’d forgotten my water belt which also contained the Gu Gel that was supposed to get me through the second half of the trek. So, I turned around and headed home to get the belt. No big deal, right? A few moments later, I was back on track and headed to the end of my subdivision where I usually transition from my warm up walk into a run. But when I reached the sidewalk, it was an absolute mess from the wet winter weather we’d been having lately. I expected there to be some icy patches on the sidewalks but I didn’t quite expect this:

‘How on earth is anyone supposed to safely run on a sidewalk that resembles a hockey arena?’ I thought to myself. But the runner in me said to keep going and give it my best shot. So I did. I ran for 5 feet when the sidewalk was clear and waddled, slipped, and slid where the sidewalk was slippery. After 3km, I decided it wasn’t worth a broken ankle and I made the decision to head for home. I was more than a little pissed off that Mother Nature could have such disregard for my Sunday morning run plans.

Once I turned around and headed for home, I saw something coming towards me down the sidewalk. I knew right away that it was a skid steer that was out salting the very sidewalks that I just spent 3km trying not to break my ankle on. For some reason, this enraged me. Why couldn’t they have salted the sidewalk BEFORE I needed to run!? By now, I was cold, angry, and frustrated with the whole experience so I hurried home, slammed the door and teared up. “Today was supposed to be my long run!” I yelled to my husband who was still half asleep in bed. “The weather completely ruined my day!” He didn’t seem nearly as distraught by this as I was. Perhaps he is just too familiar with my over-reactions when things don’t go my way?

After a hot shower and a cup of coffee to calm my nerves, things started to look up. My Dad invited us to go skating at the Halifax Oval that afternoon and we went to lunch first where he and my stepmom treated me to a belated birthday meal and a beautiful card. It was about time something went right in my day! By the time I had been on the ice at The Oval for an hour, I had almost completely forgotten about my rough morning and really ended up enjoying my day.

The lesson I learned? Try not to get too bent out of shape about things I can’t control. Enjoy the small stuff and know that in order to make any major progress – running related or otherwise – I’m gonna have to maneuver around a few obstacles and try to make the best of the journey.

Until next time!

Andrea