Nothing says I love you like a 10K

Today I feel in love with running all over again.  No it wasn't a marathon or even a half, but it was just about the most perfect 10K I could have dreamed of (except maybe with a faster time...). After a long week and a busy weekend with about 10 hours of sleep total, I dragged my butt out of bed at 6AM (on my day off) to run.  If that doesn't say 'I love you' what does? 

I picked up my race bib, packet, and time chip around 7 and hung around for the 8:00 start.  I turned pandora on and off I went.  Now a 10K is only 6.2 miles, but no matter what distance I run, I always find the first 1-2 miles to prove a little difficult.  Today's race was no exception.  I started off slower than usual and really focused on enjoying the pace that I was running at.  And to make things better, I didn't time myself by the mile markers taking off a lot of pressure. 

To make a long story short (or 1:00:57 - my time), I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of the race today.  The weather was beautiful, the crowd energizing, and even the hills didn't seems so bad.  Maybe it was the negative splits or maybe the runner's high but by the end of the race, I was in love with running again. 

It felt good to remember the feel of the pavement, the excitement of the crowd, and pushing through any discomfort.  It felt amazing to let all the work things and boy things and family things go and just run.  I was spending time with myself and I had no cares in the world. And who doesn't love that?