A Bright, Bright Sunshiney Day

I had a cleansing run today. It wasn't a good run, but it felt like it cleared a bunch of junk out of me. January was rough weather, rough health, and rough emotions. It has rained everyday here for the last two weeks (but it feels like a month), our remodel has put a lot of stress on our household, and everyone has been sick the last week - including me. So I struggled this morning deciding to put my running shoes on, because I knew I wouldn't run well, but I also knew it would make me feel better. The day started with some welcome rays of sunshine though, and they called me out of my house winning over my hesitation.

The first mile and a half were rough, my lungs felt tight, my back was achy, lots of mud puddles an muck to negotiate. Then Johnny Nash came on my ipod, "I Can See Clearly Now, the Rain is Gone" - it felt like a new beginning. This song isn't on my running playlist, but I messed up my settings when I started my run and didn't want to stop and fix it. It was the perfect day for this song. I played the song two more times, and let all the gunk work it way out of me. I ran faster, left the bad stuff in the mud and finished my four miles faster than I started.

I've been stuggling with setting my running goal for the month....I want 90 miles, but then I struggle with if I really have the time to fit those miles in. Am I suppose to count the miles I walk for warm-up and cooling down in my total mileage? I feel like I'm cheating if I do this.