"I'm a runner...and I'm running..."

So apparently this year I became a runner (which gives further evidence that one ought to follow the advice of my first blog post). I started running one day in January when I had some energy to get out and the elliptical machine wasn't going to cut it. Then some of my friends convinced me to run a 5K with them, which turned into more 5Ks and then one week I found myself doing interval training on a track paired with a "long run" on the weekend. And this past week I got these:
New running shoes. A few weeks ago I started having achy calves when I ran and after I ran I could barely walk down stairs. At first I blamed it the fact that I had worn heels to a wedding and hit the dance floor pretty hard. And then when after a couple of weeks it didn't go away, I was convinced that it was true: my body hit its physical peak at the age of 28. Someone suggested that I might need new shoes, which was quickly confirmed by the friendly people at Gazelle. I had to order them online (a common problem for those with larger feet) and thus had my pick of colors. I went with "Lightening Ice" because they sounded speedy and I was hopeful they would help me run faster.

Nope.

In fact, my first run while sporting the Lightening Ice was perhaps the crappiest run I have had in months. The good news was that my calves didn't hurt, but the bad news was that I was ready to quit running by the time I got home. I had heard that running was mental but didn't really understand this until I became a "runner." I still don't quite get why one day I feel like I could run forever and the next I feel like I'll be lucky to make it to the next street corner. I think some of it has to do with simply believing that you can run. Believing that you did it before, so you can do it again. Trusting that even though you had a crappy run today, tomorrow's run might be the best of your life. And you just tell yourself, "I'm a runner, I'm running...because that's what runners do."

I leave for Africa in two days. I like to think that that I am not running away from things...but I also know that there are many things here that I would like to run away from. I guess the best I can do is pack the Lightening Ice and hope that I come back from Africa still running.