On the edge.

As runners, it feels as though we are always teetering on the edge of healthy and .... not. It is truly a balancing act that involves getting not only the running in but the stretching, the strength training, and above all the proper recovery. For me, it has always been easy to get the training part in but the recovery has always been a struggle. Perhaps, I never understood or saw the value in it - after all, aren't we more resilient than we give ourselves credit for? I have always thought so.
But the older I get - go ahead, roll your eyes but it is true - the more important recovery becomes. Every once in a while I have a momentary lapse, like not leaving enough room to recover. Yesterday, I went for a steady 45 minute run, followed up by a core session and then, after a sip of water and a half a cup of yogurt I hurried to a 90-minute hot yoga class - and forgot to bring water. Needless to say, it was not a great class for me. In fact, I almost blacked out a couple of times.

There never seems to be enough time to get it all done and so we tend to pack, pack, pack the days with as much 'work' as possible. I am constantly having conversations and sometimes even arguments with myself about this concept. Doing less sounds like laziness to me but doing too much is self-defeating - again, teetering on the edge, finding your own kind of balance. And so, as I head out for my track workout this morning I do a self-check/evaluation ... protein packed dinner, 9 hours of sleep, morning snack, rest, workout plan, okay - ready to go. When I finish my workout it will begin all over again ... stretch, food, fluids, foam roller, icing, rest, food, fluids, 2nd run, lift, food, fluids, rest, do it again ... my own sort of balance.