Running (wo)man…
It’s funny how that little switch in your brain goes on or off. You can spend months sucked into a cycle of stress and worry, and bad habits… and then all of a sudden it feels like a shift has taken place, and you feel like you’ve come out of a coma.
After a pretty long and not all that great weekend, I emerged from the fog on Monday feeling drained but calm. My very good intentions to go to gym didn’t quite pan out, and I had a mini epiphany (ok, more like a reminder!) when my fellow copywriters and I dissected the calorie content vs worth of a small packet of Woolies sea salt and rosemary crisps. While that didn’t stop me from indulging in some wine that night, it did prompt me to head for the fruit and veg aisle. Yesterday, I woke up feeling summery and content – it was a glorious day in Cape Town, and how can anyone resist summer in the city? A return to gym, a good stepper session that left my butt muscles aching, some pathetic weight machine work and a bit of a cycle was enough for one day, and after getting a coupon for Tan Can (yippee!) and stopped for pecan nuts, vitamin water, avo and rye bread, I was feeling great. A few drinks (ok, I drank, bf stuck to orange juice) at Patron later and I would have thought I’d sleep like a log… but instead I tossed and turned the whole night.
Today I felt exhausted, but more like my old self than I have in a while. Healthy food, productive work day, clean flat… and after work, I had my first run in months!
Being out in the beautiful fresh evening, with Fiddy Cent blasting on my iShuffle and the smell of freshly mowed grass in the air, with the blood pumping through my veins and my muscles rejoicing, it felt like I could have carried on forever. I hardly stopped to catch my breath, and while I’m feeling a bit tender, it felt like I had never been away.
My head is finally clearing itself of all the stress of the past few months… everything is finally feeling calm and peaceful again. For the first time in almost a year, I also finally feel secure on the work front. Relief is finally coming through, and while I won’t deny that I feel pretty shattered, it feels so good to be able to just breath again!
Much as I could quite honestly head to bed right now, I have a lot of work to do and still haven’t even eaten yet. Sweet potato discos are roasting, chickpeas will be spiced, and my divine salad will almost be ready soon. So what if I pinched the idea from Woolies, mine will be better.
For now, I am savouring my green tea and jasmine and debating whether I feel like working The Cure or Bruce Springsteen. It feels like a night for The Boss, so think I will go with the latter!
*happy sigh*
She said whaaat?