I'm Not Running Much These Days - Dirty Old Sneakers

It’s been a really tough year for all of us.

If you haven’t seen Julie Nolke’s video where she tries to explain the pandemic to her past self, I highly suggest you take three minutes out of your life and do so.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been having a really hard time motivating myself to exercise. And If I were to be completely honest, I would admit that it’s been a few years since I had my mojo in hand.

Losing My Mojo

A few years ago I DNF’d the NYC marathon, a race that I look forward to all year – every year.

Looking back, not too long ago, I would run three marathons a year. One in the spring and two in the fall. But a few years ago, that ended kinda swiftly.

Not long after I PR’d the distance in 2013, I got cocky. And then I got complacent. And then I think I lost respect the distance. And finally, I lost my drive.

At the top of Bear Mountain back in 2010

And that’s been the worst part of this whole thing. I remember being so excited to do a long run, I would email my friends on Tuesday to start planning when and where to meet, the course we’d run and where we’d go after to eat pancakes.

Those days are long gone. And not just because I’ve misplaced my mojo, I also got married. And had a son. And well, life gets busy and commitments change. But I that doesn’t mean I love the sport any less.

I need to do something to find that mojo again, I think I’ve finally figured it out.

See, before this year when everything started getting cancelled, I always felt like I would HAVE to run all the races and participate in the big marathons, especially the NYC race, I mean it’s my hometown!

Finding that Spark

But, since the races have been cancelled, I don’t feel obligated to run in order to finish a given distance. And all things being equal, I started thinking about getting back to my roots.

When I started running back in 2007, I was in a relationship with a woman who hated that I would disappear on the bike for up to half a day. She was a runner, so I figured I could get the same fix by running. And as it turned out, I could, I did and I loved it.

Of course, she was then pissed that I would disappear for hours at a time training for marathons, but that’s a different post.

Anyway, my endurance sports roots are on the bike. So back in March, I decided to get back in the saddle (figuratively and literally). So I’ve been logging miles on the bike since then.

Finding My Way

I’ll be honest, hills are still not my friends but I now remember why I like them so much. And I’m finding that I can push myself to get a pretty decent workout. I’m psyched!

Oh, I’m still running. I mean how can I do running shoe reviews if I’m not logging miles in said sneaks.

But my mainstay for now is cycling. I’m really finding a new love for endurance sports. And, I found a new outlet to spend all my money on (like new kits).

Now, I just need to talk myself out of that 2020 Cervelo R5 with disc brakes and e-Tap.

I ride a 54cm if you wanna sponsor me.

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My Current Running Gear

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