Winter doldrums

Here it is ladies and gentlemen. The winter blues. How is it still January? This is what happens every year: January drags out, February slowly passes by, mostly because it is a short month, and then once March hits, I start to feel like a person again. I mean the bears and other hibernating animals have got the right idea. Sleep away winter. Who needs it anyway, right?

So here goes my attempt to embrace winter. The past week was great. The slight reprieve from bitterly cold weather was a nice pick-me up. I actually got to do some training off the treadmill. So here are my positives for the week.

1. Week one of half marathon training when well. I made it through with only a minor hiccup in the training schedule. But life happens, and there is just no stopping that.  I ended the week with a race in the frostbite series where I in fact ran next to the loudest breather I have ever heard. I did not run next to this most of the race because this heavy breathing was motivating. I just could not get away from him. the noises he was making were unreal. I am not just talking labored breathing. I am talking grunting, huffing and mumbling. I had to really pick up the last mile to get away from it. He finished shortly behind me. When results were posted, I looked him up. He was a 67 year old man, and hey you can't rip on that heavy breathing and all. Kudos to him. I hope when I am 67, I am still running even if it means being the loudest breather ever.

2. This next one comes as a public service announcement of sorts. When you go to a gym that has a water aquatics program, it may benefit you to memorize the water aerobic class schedule. Take that schedule and avoid any locker room situations 20 minutes before the class starts and after the class ends. In a generation where it seemed modesty was key, that modesty will most likely not be found in the locker room during these aforementioned times. I speak from experience. Monday nights around 7 pm I will now be careful when entering the locker room. Eyes straight ahead as to avoid looking into the future.