Happy Run

I can honestly say that I have never regretted a run - as far as I can remember, anyway.  It is like a chemical reaction with a variable activation energy but a predictable release of energy once complete.  Yesterday, after a rewarding but long weekend with the kids, with the weather hot and sticky for the first time this season, I was tired.  After dinner I felt the old familiar urge, laced up my shoes, and took off.  The warm up was painful and I thought about "just taking a walk", but my body responded and after half a mile I was feeling great on a trail under a canopy of trees.  I read recently about the various chemicals released during a run - endogenous opioids / endorphins for pain control and the "runner's high", serotonin, catecholamines, and finally endogenous cannabinoids for the sense of well being lasting up to 48 hours.  I wonder what the chemical profile in yoga is, as it is the only thing that leaves me feeling even close to a good run.

Working out with Jess over the last few weeks has been fun - she has started p90x and I have been doing some of the workouts with her.  More importantly I have been getting up early before work, at least most days of the week, and really enjoying the time, exercise, and shared challenge of a tough workout.  This is paradoxically important when I am busy and sleep-deprived; despite my own self-sabotagiong when the alarm goes off, the hour of exercise and reflective time is almost always worth the lost hour of sleep.

Saturday: AM: p90x "arms and shoulders"  PM: indoor bike 30 min

Sunday: AM: 37 burpees  PM: run 3 mi

Today: 14 burpees / rest

Tomorrow: yoga and pullups