Being Flexible for February

You may know I am a big fan of yoga.  I try to make it a regular part of my weekly workouts to improve my mental focus, balance and flexibility.  And while it's fun to be bendy and make myself into a pretzel, I recently found a few new ways to test my flexibility.

I was fortunate to recently take an incredible vacation to the beautiful island of St John.  The beaches had the softest sand and the bluest water.  The weather was ideal with lows in the mid 70s and highs in the low 80s every day.  Perfect for a few days of running without hand warmers and layers of Under Armor.  Until I realized my potential running routes.

Hilly roads on the sides of mountains, with nothing for a shoulder, except a white line.  I thought about it, but after seeing a few runners attempt it, I was confident it was not a good idea.  So, for an entire week I woke up and did yoga and some strength training on the patio of our villa.  OK, so it wasn't terrible, but it wasn't running.

I didn't want vacation to end, but I looked forward to getting home for my Saturday long run with the Alzheimer's team.  Until Thursday, when the predictions for snow arriving in Boston Friday turned into predictions for a blizzard.

We made it to Miami and were rebooked on a flight to Boston Monday morning.

Again, a test of my ability to be flexible.  The plan was to return Friday to have the weekend to unpack, do laundry, go grocery shopping...get settled after being away for a week.  While Miami for 3 days was not part of the vacation plan, it wasn't so bad.  And I'm glad I was able to realize this then, and not just in retrospect.  I had great company, the weather was better than it was back in New England, and I finally got to go for a few runs in shorts!

I didn't however go for my long run.  So after I returned Monday afternoon to Boston, unpacked, and shoveled my car out, I hit the treadmill for 14.5 miles.  Three miles in my iPod died. (Oh, not my real iPod, I lost that on the plane.  This was my classic iPod mini, complete with playlists circa 2006.)  But I did it.

So far, February has tested my flexibility in a few ways.  I have rolled with the punches for the most part and am pretty proud of myself for the outcomes.  I may have wanted to use a different "F" word a few times, but instead, maybe this was all part of my training to get to the finish line on April 15th.