The Mind-Numbing and Healing Power of Running

by - Wednesday, May 08, 2013

One of the things I love about running is the way you can push yourself in speed or distance and completely forget all the crap that happened earlier in the day.

Taking my new Sauconys for a spin. Why yes they are so bright they reflect off my shins. #findyourstrong

To put it mildly, yesterday kind of sucked for me.

It was a chaotic day at the office, new things kept popping up pulling my attention from things that needed to get done, I was stuck in meetings for what seemed like forever. By the time I left the office, I was a frazzled ball of stress feeling like I got absolutely nothing of value accomplished.

Oh and plus while I was in the office, I tried to relieve some of the stress by thoroughly enjoying some leftover cake from a retirement party and a few Oreos. Yeaaaa, go me.

So when I got home, I wanted to feel like I had accomplished something of value, and I wanted to stop thinking about all the stuff I did not accomplish at work.

Enter running. The perfect way to really shut your mind off for a bit.

I was torn between a long slow distance run and some grueling, heart pounding intervals.

https://twitter.com/jessmilcetich/status/331878836490866688

Since the weather was rainy and gross, I opted for treadmill intervals.

The plan was to do about an hour of intervals, but by that point in the workout, I was feeling good and didn't want to stop. So I kept pushing.

And eventually I knocked out something like 10 miles of intervals (including warm up and cool down).

Sweat was literally pouring down my back, dripping out of my hair and falling into my eyes by the time I was finished. I was an absolutely disgusting mess, but I felt so good.

Bit tricky to tell in this picture but my shirt was completely drenched after last nights interval workout.
My shirt was so drenched with sweat I could have wrung it out.

My mind was clear, and the work stress seemed like a minor blimp on the radar. I felt calmer and happier, and most importantly, I felt like I had accomplished something worthwhile.

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3 comments

  1. Ah, that's how it's done. Outstanding! 10 miles is a looooooot of interval work. But you know it will pay off in the long run, both with mental capacity and faster long runs later. Good job.

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  2. Ten miles of intervals?? I'd be covered in sweat too! Running really works wonders, doesn't it?

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  3. Christina10:19 AM

    Exactly why I love running too at the end of a long day. That's very impressive- 10 mi of interval work!

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