On Monday after I got home from work I pulled up Google Maps and plotted a six mile route around my neighborhood and the surrounding areas.  I laced up my running shoes, grabbed Scout and headed out the door.  I didn’t have great expectations for myself.  Though my last two runs had gone exceptionally well (in regards to their being free of panic attacks and have-to-walk-a-bit moments), I had been neglecting my workout program for 4 days.  I didn’t expect to be able to run the entire 6 miles.  I expected to get to 5, maybe, then to walk for a bit.  I expected to want to die around mile 3 like usual.  I expected that at the top of each and every one of the hills I would have to grit my teeth and work hard to talk myself into keeping my running pace.  Jogging pace.  Anything faster than walking pace.

Sometimes when I run, the first 10 minutes are the hardest.  But on Monday the “hard minutes” were over by minute 7.  Somewhere around mile 2.5, I found that I wasn’t hurting anymore.  I’m not sure if this sensation is what runners are talking about when they refer to “a runner’s high,” but I did appreciate the escape from the pain.  As I passed 4.6 miles, my previous farthest-run record, I laughed to myself and thought I could go on running like that forever.  When I got to 5.5 miles I started to feel pain in places where I’d never felt pain from running before.  Soon after that I saw my GPS/Run Timer include a “1″ before the minute counter.  I had been exercising–running–for over an hour.  Me.  A girl who less than 6 months ago had legitimate difficulty running for 3 minutes at a time.  I couldn’t believe it.  The sheer glee from seeing my run-timer turn the hour mark gave me enough energy to finish the last half-mile through the aches and pains I was feeling in my hips, knees and ankles.  I hobbled around for the rest of the night like a grandma, trying to gently stretch the tightness out of my calves and hamstrings.  And smiling the whole time.

Six freaking miles.  I can’t even believe it myself.  I am a person who can run six miles, in a row, no stopping.