Penny for Your Thoughts

People always ask me what I think about when I run--especially when they find out I don't run with music. I generally don't have an answer for them, which leaves them (and me) bewildered. It's true though! I really don't know what I think about, particularly on those 1+ hour runs. So yesterday I thought I'd try to pay a little more attention, and I spent some time today trying to figure out exactly what I think about. Without further adieu, here are my top 10 running thoughts:

1. "Ow! Side-ache! Breathe out, breathe out!"
2. I'm always mentally checking my form because it still needs work. I'm constantly reminding myself to land mid-foot, keep my shoulders relaxed, chest open, and arms swinging straight forward.
3. My thesis. I've pounded the pavement to media effects and family systems theory for months, nay, years! This one is on its way out though, and will soon be replaced by "my dissertation"--I'm starting a Ph.D. in the fall. Wish me luck!
   
4. Flowers. Now that it's Spring, there are so many gorgeous flowers everywhere I look! Sometimes I have to force myself to keep going and not stop and smell the, er, tulips. And yesterday I may or may not have become totally distracted by some baby sheep!
   
5. I pray. I really do. I spend a lot of time talking to God while I run. I've found that the early morning quiet is most conducive to personal reflection and prayer, and I love the calmness that I experience during and after those runs.
   
6. "Danger, Will Robinson, danger!" I spend a lot of time trying to guess what the cars around me are going to do. Are they going to see me? Will they yield? Is that soccer mom in her tank-sized SUV going to turn left even though I'm halfway out in the intersection and have the right-of-way? Kind of the complete opposite of the calming thoughts in #5.
7. Food. I'm always thinking about what I'm going to eat either right after my run, or later that day. It usually involves some type of frozen yogurt or some other delicious treat.
8. "Come on! Almost there!" These are the little mantras I wheeze to myself as I near the final stretch. And don't worry, I say them out loud. People probably think I'm crazy.
   
9. Relationships. I've got to work out that drama somehow!
10. How awesome/intense/inspiring I look...or actually, how much I look like I'm dying and how I'm probably scaring everyone around me.
    

There you have it. Those are the deep, inspirational thoughts of one Athena Runner. What do you think about?