Running with My Spouse

My Mother' Day gift to my wife this year was a new pair of running shoes. We wanted to buy them from Strictly Running, since I have loved my pair. Tonight was our first chance to head into town to buy them.

So, tonight became a Home Course Run with the Wife. Amy wanted to try out her new kicks, and I was looking forward to a running partner. I have read that no one should train and run strictly solo, and after tonight I agree.

Usually running at night is a solitary thing, which is fine, but having Amy with me tonight was comforting. We have both been working hard at getting into better shape. We have both been training consistently at the Y. We have both made running 5Ks a goal for the year. It has been about 6 months since our commitment, and tonight was special for me, because as Amy bounced along beside me, I thought about how much we've changed since December.

We ran for about 28 minutes covering 2 laps of the lake for about 3 miles of training. Amy wanted to work on running hills, which she feels hurt her in the last race, so tonight was a new challenge for her. We started off at an easy pace for the first lap, but I could tell my wife's competitive edge was kicking in the second time around, when the pace quickened.

I was happy just cruising along for a nice easy jog tonight, but that changed in the hilly back section of our second lap. Amy's Be-Boppin' Bouncin' style of running started picking up. Soon I had a hard time even keeping up. I wasn't mentally planning on pushing it, and now I was tailing behind at times by a couple of strides.

Of course, I wasn't going to let her beat me.

My competitive edge took over, and I made sure to keep shoulder to shoulder the rest of the way around.

However, as the last minute of our program chimed in across our headsets, we both took off. Knowing what the other was planning, we both laughed, realizing the nice easy stroll was no longer an option.

It was officially on.

Stretching my gait into a sprint, pushing my hips forward to maximixe form, and straightening up to pull in extra O2, I pushed into the red zone and barely kept up.

My entry stops there.

You'll have to conclude this one on your own.

I will say this running with your spouse is fun, but hazardous to your ego.

Next Goal: Swim 500m

Current Status: Fullfilled

Upcoming: Busy Schedule will demand a day of rest. Heading to the Beach for the weekend, so I will likely take off from training until Saturday.