this morning was hard and I don’t know why?

I don’t look really happy huh?

It was okay, just a really hard run this morning for some reason…..heat, the pollen in the air hammering my allergies, tired? My legs seem to be struggling with recovering between runs….I may have to resort to running every other day…

After spending yesterday evening and this morning trying to decide where to go, I settled on the same old same old down in the Edmonton River Valley….a route I know well, one i can add on to, shorten, easily…some options for unpaved, and one honking big climb…and well, I wanted to swim after, and grocery shopping after…so yeah why not.

I love my river valley…hard to believe, since probably junior high school, maybe before, I’ve been biking, walk or running in it most of my life……sure, not when I lived in Jasper, Vancouver or Kamloops, which works out to about 16 years, but that gives me almost 50 years, here….there have been a lot of changes, now more pavement than way back when…but the same river, the same valley ….though I will say the river looks really low for this time of year….and always beautiful and amazing….

Yes, I love Vancouver, and cannot think of anywhere else that would suit me better…a place where people spend the majority of their time outside doing stuff…and being on a bike, or walking is as normal as driving anywhere…..

The one thing that’s changed, is my car……going to the Hyundai Kona, something that’s more reliable than my old Nissan Altima, and frankly more fun to drive….has changed things….I’m still getting used to it, but the tinted windows, being a little higher up, the smaller compact driving size (like Doctor Who and the Tardis, it’s bigger on the inside) it’s fun to drive……a blast….which I have to pull back on though….because, well, I really don’t need any speeding tickets. I have to learn how to drive more conservatively…and not so aggresively….so, there’s a goal.

The run was done…hills, a few spots where I just kicked back and enjoyed the ride, and I saw a dragon

and then I did find some off road territory

I finished off the morning with a quick 1,000 meter swim, 23 minutes, felt great, and the into the hot tub at the Kinsmen Sport Centre….

Weird thing too…. lately, the hot pool has been giving issues, I’m usually in their for only 5 minutes, more or less, today 6….and have felt faint ever since……it’s usually an adventure to get into the shower room, dry and change….so, maybe it’s time for a doctor’s appointment?

I’m also focusing on making life simple….just relaxing, picking one goal for the day, if I have time or can do something else, added on, so be it….but, yeahh, balanced, doing what I want to do…and leaving it at that