Monday, November 17, 2014

Play on Playa (Del Carmen)

You see my running shoes stuffed down there in my backpack?  
 

That's exactly where they stayed the entire time I was in Playa Del Carmen. Well, except for that one time I had to take them out to make room for beach towels and such. It was all play and no run in Playa.  I blame it on several things: not enough time, safety issues, and self-induced dehydration.  But mostly, if I'm going to be honest, I didn't run simply because I didn't feel like it. 

I was feeling pretty down on myself for not running while I was in Mexico. One of my favorite things to do is run new cities, states, and countries and I felt badly for not doing just that.  Plus, I had planned on blogging to you about my gorgeous runs along the beach (if you'll just picture wonderfully blue water next to a soft sand beach, I'm sure that's what it would have been like). 

But then I started looking at why I didn't run. I didn't run because I didn't want to. I wanted to want to, but I just didn't.  What I wanted to do was sleep in without ever having to hit snooze on an alarm.  I wanted to wake up and walk to breakfast with friends.  I wanted to spend the mornings walking the beach barefoot.  I wanted to spend my evenings out with friends doing whatever came to mind instead of worrying about hydrating or getting enough rest for a run.  I didn't want to care about my training schedule or my upcoming race.  I didn't want to worry about anything at all.  After all, isn't that the entire point of a vacation?  Isn't a vacation meant to leave you feeling rested and relaxed and rejuvenated?  I'm not saying that running on vacation prevents you from feeling rested and relaxed and rejuvenated.  Normally, I love running on vacation.  I love waking up before The Hubs and getting my run in and coming back feeling excited for the day ahead.  But, this time, that wasn't what my mind or body craved.  This time, I, apparently, wanted a vacation from it all.  And, after realizing that, I've decided not to beat myself up over it.  It's not like I gave up running all together.  In fact, I've already gone for my Monday run and it felt great.  Taking a few days off to relax isn't the end of the world.  In fact, it may be just what my world needed. 
 
Add "drink" in there and you've got my vacation schedule.
 
 

2 comments:

  1. This is exactly what I needed to hear! My car was broken into last week (beware of the buffalo bayou parking lot right off allen parkway) and my wallet, watch, house keys, and work computer was stolen. It has been so exhausting getting all of my stuff back in order that I just haven't felt like running or even working out! It was such an invasion of privacy having my stuff stolen...even if I wasn't there! And now I'm a little uneasy about running in the evenings now which doesn't make a whole lot of sense. But, like you said, it's okay I took a few days off! Looks like it is me and the treadmill until I feel completely back to normal :)

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  2. I'm so sorry that happened to you!! There is nothing more frustrating than having to deal with theft. I see glass in that parking lot, so rest assured that you are not alone. Here is what I'm always telling myself: Running is not my job. Running is something I do because I like it. So, if for whatever reason, I'm not liking it, I don't have to do it. It will be there when I'm ready again.

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