At the end of every month, I’m going to try and summarize my progress compared to previous months. I’m not going to make it long and drawn out, just a few bullet points, so here goes.

This month, I:

• Increased my total distance from 25 miles and 13 runs in February to 26.3 miles and 18 runs in March.
• I began using MyFitnessPal again to track caloric intake. Currently I’m on a 16 day streak.
• I started taking mental breaks during the work day by meditating and eating lunches at the park near my office.
• I visited a new running trail called Nob Hill Trail. It’s a lovely meandering path next to Furneaux Creek and a few man made ponds.
• I’ve adjusted my workout schedule to 4 a week, 2 are just for me, and 2 are for Izzie.

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I’ve never been the outdoorsy type. I never grew up camping. In fact, I’ve never even slept in a tent. My idea of being outdoors is sitting on a patio somewhere, possibly overlooking a lake, with an ice cold margarita in hand.

That being said, for me to spend this much time outdoors and actually enjoy it is a change for me. Granted we are still in the early days of spring because I’m sure once the Texas heat starts invading, I’ll probably be singing a different tune.

This weekend I’ve spent more outdoor time with Izzie. I’ve decided that weekday workouts are just for me while weekends are for Izzie since she tends to get distracted out on the trail. Also she’s not really able to do a full 2 miles just yet (but we’re getting there).

Lately I’ve been scoping out different trails nearby. I decided to check one out for run #61. It was a drive, but still close enough for it to be convenient.

We arrived around 10:00 and by then, the park was already populated with other runners and cyclists. It wasn’t too bad, even though Izzie does get anxious around strangers and other dogs.  Our start was a little rough. I was trying to figure out the best way to ease us into the traffic flow and Izzie just wanted to pee on everything in sight. This made me thankful that I’d already completed my own workouts earlier this week, otherwise I don’t think I would’ve had the patience for her.

Finally we got into a good rhythm. We crossed other runners and other dogs on the path, did the neighborly, courteous good morning greetings, nods, and smiles. We even met a little shih tzu who stopped and said hello to Izzie, and whom Izzie graciously tolerated.

The paved path meandered along a winding creek and a series of man made ponds. At around the 1 mile mark, Izzie stopped and fell onto a pile of warm, green shaded grass to catch her breath. I could’ve pushed her into continuing on, but we were at the last bend of the path where the series of ponds stopped and there were a few trees along the edge of the water. At that moment, I decided it was more important to stop and enjoy the scenery than to continue on with the workout.

I led her off the path and we sat down in the shade of a tree next to the pond, Izzie in front of me. It was nice to have the break and just sit there enjoying the breeze and the water.

I knew the break was over when Izzie stood up and looked at me anxiously. She wanted to get back on the trail. So we did, but this time we headed back the way we came where I’d parked the car.

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