Happy National Running Day!

I admit, I was a little reluctant to go for a run today, which is crazy, considering it is National Running Day!  I have been in quite a slump the past week or so and just need to get back in a groove.  I was using every excuse in the book tonight; It's too humid, It's cloudy, I think it might rain... Luckily, my friend, Mary, gave me the little push I needed to get out there and we went for a run after work.

We did a little over 2 miles and then we stopped by the tents set up by GO! St. Louis to grab a free beer, water, and pretzels.  We always see fellow runners when we go to the park near our office, but it was really nice today to see so many of us out there doing what we love.  Thanks, Mer, for getting me out the door tonight to go run!

Lovely view on our run

It was really nice to get back out and run after nearly a week and a half off and it was equally nice to run on a relatively flat path after all of my hilly runs the past few weeks.  An added bonus was getting pictures with two more STL 250 cakes!  I appreciate my friends and family being game for stopping frequently for cake photos.  I'm up to 12 cakes now!

Forest Park Visitors Center cake 

Fair St. Louis cake with the St. Louis Art Museum in the background

I hope that wherever you were today that you got to celebrate National Running Day and go for a run, if you wanted!

I run to...

Prove to myself that I can

Be a healthy, strong example for my sons

Find my inner peace

Lose Weight

Push my mental and physical boundaries to the limit

See where my legs will take me

Explore parts of my city that I've never seen before and re-experience other areas in a different light

To enjoy the solitude of the open road

Mary and I post-run with the great "I Run Because..." bib that GO! St. Louis provided us tonight

All runs should end like this!

I'd love to hear why you run, so please feel free to comment below!  

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure."