A For Effort

In terms of effort, today was probably the best practice of the season. My assistant coach and I have been frustrated at the lack of effort that has been shown the last couple weeks. Today was a different story.

This is the last week of practice. Our last meet, the Championship Meet, is this Thursday. The boys are really excited. (Although, they may be more excited about the season being over :-)) I had to tempt them with a day off on Wednesday for them to have a good practice. By "good practice," I mean putting forth a good effort. The kind I've been wanting to see all year. And, I'll tell you what, they definitely earned that day off.

On a less positive note, one of our kids got suspended on Friday as a result of a moment of poor judgement, so unfortunately our trio is now down to two.

Return to Running

Well, after about a week and a half of restraining myself, I went for a short jog yesterday. I was actually in Utah with my family celebrating the birthday of my mother-in-law. It was great to be back and to see everyone. Though I wasn't planning to run on this trip (I didn't even bring any running clothes--luckily I wore a pair of recently retired running shoes), I couldn't resist the temptation. I headed out with my wife's 13-year-old little brother (who, by the way, has recently started running). We made our way to a short trail near his house. It is not even a quarter of a mile long, but it is still one of my favorite places to run. A dirt trail with trees on both sides, and the Hobble Creek running alongside the path. It is a beautiful trail, made even more beautiful by the falling leaves. I hope you enjoy the slideshow tour of this gorgeous trail.

Pratfall

"Pronunciation: præt-fawl (-fawl)
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: 1. A fall on the bum, bottom, rear, butt. 2. A mortifying blunder, an inexcusable act of stupidity." (alphadictionary.com)

Because of a pratfall last week, I think I will be taking some unwelcome time off. In response to my humbling experience (see Humbled), I wanted to have a fun game day for the boys, so we ran over to a nearby park and played tag. Of course, the boys tried to chase me, so I was teasing one of them by running backward. I don't know if a sprinkler jumped out at me or if I just tripped over my own feet, but I fell right down (hard) on my gluteus maximus. It hurt pretty bad, but I was able to get up and keep playing (though not quite as fast, and definitely not backwards), without too much discomfort.

I was a little sore the next few days, but I didn't think it was a problem. So on Saturday, I went out for an easy 5 miles. It was a little sore, but after about a half mile, it felt fine. Then on Monday morning, I went out again, and the back of my whole left leg was really tight. Since then, my rear has been even more uncomfortable, so I am deciding to take some time off to recover. My wife and I have joked that not being able to run would be my own personal hell. Hopefully, it won't last too long.