I woke this morning to a huge clap of thunder and pounding rain. It was not what I planned for today. But I shifted to “plan B,” put on my running clothes and surged ahead with chores inside. Within the hour, the rain had subsided. And out I went, down the wet sidewalks, and around Lake Ellyn which was, of course, flooded again, the trees and park benches standing in the overflowing water like stubborn children. As in life, every day of training is not going to be sunny and bright. When it is raining, there are several options: 1) claim it as a “rest day,” 2) find a friend with a treadmill, 3) run in the rain, or 4) get ready and wait it out. Quite frankly, with the 97 percent humidity this morning, it might as well have been raining. My clothes were soaked anyway.
We live in a real world and even the best made schedule is not always going to work out. Know your options for when you have sick kids, or it is outrageous weather, or you are called out of town on business. Have your running clothes set out and ready, even in your car, if necessary. (I had a friend who used to run around the field while her kids had soccer practice). Make it work for you. From now on, “flexibility” is your middle name. Be ready to run when the opportunity presents itself.
And sometimes, you just run in the rain. You are not the Wicked Witch of the West from the Wizard of Oz. You will not melt. Running in the rain just makes the good days even better. And sometimes it is even fun.
One year, the weekend before the marathon, I was scheduled for eight miles. It was literally 36 degrees and pouring down rain, my worst fear for marathon day. I was ready to pass on that one, but Bill encouraged me to get out there, “If you can run in this, you won’t be afraid of anything the marathon throws at you.” I went. It wasn’t my favorite run of all time, but he was right. I was no longer afraid that it would rain on marathon day. I knew now I could run anyway.
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