Running Into Week 6

Well, here I am, six weeks in and still running.

When I began this quest to be a runner, I promised myself that I would try it for at least a month before I contemplated quitting. And then, if I made it through the first four weeks, I would push it out for another four weeks - or preferably until the end of term. A neat ten week block.

Much to my astonishment, I have not been tempted to quit at all. It took a long time for it to stop hurting - especially as my poor calves shrieked in agony with every step - but mostly it was getting over the hurt of making my body keep moving when it just wanted to stop. Hardest of all was finding the self-belief that I could do it, that I could run three minutes, five minutes, eight minutes...

Last week I ran 20 minutes without stopping. It was slow, but I was so proud of myself because I do not think I have ever run a full 20 minutes without stopping - almost 3km. Now that I know that I can do it, I'll see if I can increase the pace a little. So far, I have not even been close to an asthma attack - and have not had to use my inhaler mid-run since the first week. I cannot believe I can do this!

I still can't say I'm loving it, but I'm finding it addictive. I even bought a running magazine last week. Who knew such things existed?

Next run is 22 minutes without stopping. I can definitely do it! Give me another month and I might well be at that magic 5km mark.

Six year blues

I've been very flat all year, something which has taken me by surprise. On the whole, I tend to be very happy just sliding through life. I have a great family, I love my job and I'm too busy to sit around contemplating the inadequacies of my life. But not this year.

I'm still busy and I still have a great job but it doesn't seem to be enough any more. It's embarrassing to admit how much I love my job. I teach high school English and thrive on it - the students are fantastic and I love sharing knowledge and watching them grow and learn. I'm never in doubt that I make a difference in many of my students' lives. Perfect, right?

But now, it's suddenly hard to walk out the door each day. It's not that I've stopped enjoying it, but more that I just want to sit home and read books all day. Everything else feels more important than work.

So what has changed?

I wonder if it is simply that six years is the longest I've ever worked in one job so a sense of familiarity (boredom?) is kicking in, that I've never experienced before. Perhaps I'm out of challenges and need to find something else to stimulate me at work. Perhaps I'm not working as closely with other teachers this year - maybe some collaboration would make a difference. Possibly, I just need to laugh some more!

The most obvious answer is to change jobs and find some more challenges, but that seems a little drastic.

Perhaps I just need to give into my inner bookworm and explore some other worlds far more exciting than my own :)