Running is a hard thing. Unless you've been running for your whole life and you're like some crazy marathon runner (and maybe even then) it's not an easy thing to do. When I was younger I played soccer, and looking back I really can't believe how easy running was for me. With a team around you there's a network of support, inspiration from competition, and two coaches blowing whistles at you making sure your tush keeps moving at a bionic pace. But in the real world, when you've worked an 11 hour day and all you want to do when you get home is go to sleep, running is not easy at all.
While I'm running, I will try to make any excuse to justify cutting the run short or to just stop all together and walk the rest of the way home. I'm sure I'm not the only one, but I really get into my head and it's always very early on. Since I've been running more and more and really enjoying the way that I feel afterward, I've had to force myself to stay motivated so that I can continue to remember why I am running in the first place. These are a couple of things to stay motivated while running that work for me.
1// make a killer playlist. Music is everything for me while I'm running. If I'm on a playlist that has a bunch of slower songs, I really lose my groove while I'm focusing on changing the song to something that will pump me up a little more. Once a fast paced song with a great beat comes on I find myself running a little bit faster and even enjoying it more. Also, if you download the
nike+ app, or have it on your ipod like me, you can set a "power song" which can be played when you need pumping up. My power song right now is set to "
can't hold us" by macklemore, and when I know I'm about four minutes from finished, I play it so that I can end my run on a good note (no pun intended). Some other good songs that get me running a little faster are
this,
this, and
this.
2// change up your route every time. At first when I started running I would run the same course around my neighborhood every day, and once I tried to extend my time, I realized I would have to run past my original route, which was hard because it felt like I should be done when I wasn't. By changing up my route from then on, it became a lot easier to keep going. Also, I usually run as far away from my house as possible once I first start because I know full well that I will have to run farther to get back and won't have a choice.
3// run a little bit further every day. Even if it's .01 miles more than the day before, it's a bit farther and makes your body a bit stronger. If you try and run the same amount every day, you end up settling and you become used to that distance. You have to keep pushing yourself otherwise it'll get old like any other routine.
That's about all I've figured out so far. I haven't got it all figured out yet, but I know that this whole running thing is getting easier for me, so I must be doing something right. What do you do to stay motivated during a workout?
This past weekend I checked off probably the most important item of my bucket list. There are a few that I know will most likely not be crossed off, and I'm definitely okay with that now. It's been over a year since all four of my college housemates and myself have been in the same room (iMessage group chats don't count). Unfortunately this is still the case, but a group of four of us got together in the nation's capital, and a future weekend has been secured and plans have begun for the full 416 N Webster reunion. So until then, we enjoyed our time as four, minus one of our beautiful ladies.
The weekend started at nine Saturday morning, but didn't really begin until about 4:45 when I actually arrived in Arlington (the traffic was ridiculous and I went over a bridge between DC and Virginia four times. Rough morning). Once I got to my friend Annie's adorable apartment and watched her boil water for macaroni and cheese for thirty minutes (because she put the pot on the wrong burner - felt just like old times), we went past the capital building and to the train station to get Nicole.
After the typical catching up gossip and chit chat, we went out to a restaurant named Fuego, which is so appropriate because even the margaritas were spicy. Cecelia met us at the restaurant and even though we were all dressed up to go out into DC, we ended up in sweats, all piled onto one bed, chatting the night away. It's not how we pictured the night, but it's exactly how we all realized we needed it to be. Just us.
The next morning we met Annie's mom for brunch at Circa (which is underneath Chris Bukowski's apartment building and around the corner from The Bracket Room, his new bar. We saw him adjusting the televisions on the wall and he's absolutely adorable). The place was really cute, the eggs were perfect, and the blood orange bellini was even better. We walked around Arlington, the cutest town in the whole country probably, and ended up on a coffee date.
Our coffee dates usually result in more chat and this one was no different. We went for manicures after that, a really cool modern consignment shop, and back to Annie's apartment. It was the shortest little visit and so far away from Long Island, but so worth it. The drive back was a little bit easier and I was so happy that I went. This all was planned on such a whim, and sometimes that makes it even better than something that was planned. And like I said, this was probably the most important thing on my list of things to do this summer.
I went to Smash Burger for the first time in the beginning of this summer, and it was like a burger awakening. Everything about the SB burger is beautiful. Not to mention, I have decided that the way I want to die is drowning in their spicy chipotle sauce.
