Random musings

The hubby and I had a great run yesterday.  Not just a good run, but a great run.  One of those runs that when you're done, you want to turn around and do it again. 

Why does that happen?  Why is it that sometimes, something you do just feels so right...and other times, not so much?

I mean, I know the mechanics of it.  For our Saturday run, we got up early before the heat, but not so early that it was still dark out.  There was coffee (a little bit), water, and some food (not too much).  We did a distance that was longer than what we normally run, but not outside of our abilities.  And we kept the pace easy, so we could talk comfortably throughout.

In other words, we did everything right.  And it paid off.  We finished the run fresh, and recovered quickly.

But sometimes it doesn't work that way.  I've had several long runs where I thought everything was done correctly, and yet I was a mess at the end. 

So what's the difference?

Is it fate?  Karma? The alignment of the Universe?  Or just plain bad luck?

Often you can pinpoint the problem.  I stayed up too late the night before, didn't hydrate properly that morning, started out too fast, or didn't fuel properly throughout the run.

But sometimes, you just have a bad run, for no apparent reason.  It happens.

Same thing with life.  Sometimes it just doesn't go right.

Luck may favor the prepared, but every so often, shit happens. 

So what to do when things go wrong?

Analyze the situation.  Break it down.  What did you do that could have been different, could have been better?  Sometimes it helps to have an outside opinion.  Find the problem, and write it down, so you'll remember next time. 

What if you can't find anything?  What if it really is just random bad luck?

Accept it and move on.  Hey, things happen, remember?  Sometimes you'll have a bad run.  But that doesn't define you.  And if you keep at it, keep doing your best, and keep working out little problems before they become big ones, the majority of your runs will be good ones.