I am a dirty dirty girl.

So what could be SO important that it warrants my second post for the day?

The fact that I went out for a run this evening, and decided to make it a trail run. Not just any trail run... a 5 mile run of hills and lakes.

What an amazing run it was! Two 5 milers on trails back to back. That is a new high for me. I am completely enamoured with trail running. Trail running is my new flirt. I am flirting with dirt in a big way. This may just turn into a full fledge love affair.

It all started when I finished up chores about the house. I mentioned in my last post that I had choices as to what I wanted to do today. I opted for the run. Instead of driving out to Kennsington I decided to head out to Maybury State Park and do an honest to goodness trail run.

I started off with no time or mileage goal, just hoping to get in around 4 or 5 miles if the trails permit. I have never really run these trails solo, and never enough to really know them in any detail, so I had to stop periodically to check out the trail markings to determine if I was infact going the right way. After a while - all the trails start to look alike!

I did an inital loop out to the west of the park, then on my way back decided to head out and loop around the lake and come back to call it a day. The trail to get to the lake splits in multple locations. One side will go higher (more hills) where the other side will go lower (more dampness and tree roots). Both are equally as technical in the big picture, but I, when given the choice, always picked the side which had the steepest hills and most technical aspects that I could see from the splitting point.

Me. I did that. I picked a fun and long and winding trail path and ran 5 miles without even blinking. I would have gone out for at least 8 or 9 miles but it was about 1/2 hour out from the sun setting and the last place I would want to be would be the trails with no light!

Lana I get it now. I should have gone out earlier and had more time to run in the trees! That is a HUGE point for running in the AM versus evening.

I ran around the lake - and it was beautiful! I ran up and down some steep hills, and remembered to just shorten my stride and make the ascent and decent as easy on my knees as possible.

*chop chop chop chop chop chop chop chop chop chop chop chop chop* My cycling hill mantra replaying over and over in my head and I just kept on running. I stopped only to look at a trail to sign make sure that I was where I wanted to be, and once to ask for clarification from a hiker as to if I was on the right path to get to the lake.

I felt alive out there today and my running legs did not let me down. I felt stronger at the end of the run again, which is odd since I really pushed myself today. I am feeling so much better about the trail run off of the AA Triathlon in a few weeks. I am feeling so hopeful for this year ahead in general - I can only go up from here!

We just entered the next step of the journey!

Keep on running!

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