So, remember how I was going to Miami to run a half?
Yeah…I didn’t run it.
It basically came down to this: we just didn’t want to do it. And how often in life can you just not do something because you don’t feel like it with no further consequences than money you’ve already spent?
We went for a run Friday morning, and it was brutal: hot, humid, sunny. Tough when you’re used to those conditions, basically hell when you’re not. We spent the next day filled with uncertainty over the race, and finally last night decided that we just wouldn’t do it. It was really hot (glorious for laying out, not so much for runners from NY not acclimated to these conditions), none of us had been training much and we would have had to wake up at 3:30 or 4 to make it to the 6:15 start time. No thanks! (Meggie said it well, too.)
And not a single second of remorse was had. We woke up around 7:30 this morning and went out for a little run of our own. No bibs, no Garmins, just the four of us and the beach. Perfect. Afterwards, we headed back and took classes at the resort. Canyon Ranch=adult camp, basically. There’s fitness classes all day long. I took a yoga class, which was a bit more athletic than I’d realized. There were lots of deep, deep stretches that hurt like hell and really got into your muscles.
The rest of the weekend was lovely and relaxing.
Friday was spent lounging at the pool, and then going to Joe’s Stone Crab for dinner. We’d all heard a lot about it, and wanted to try it. The crab was delicious, but the prices seemed a little incongruous with the decor and ambiance (which seemed like it would be more suitable for Disney World.)
Saturday, Gia had a meeting downtown so I tagged along, eager to do at least a little exploring of Miami, knowing that we’d be spending most of the rest of the afternoon at the expo and the pool. Her meeting was at Panther Coffee, which I heard great things about. I didn’t stop in, so that I wasn’t the total sketchball crashing her meeting.
I walked around the Wynwood area for a bit, ducking in and out of shops, and just taking some time to meander and take in the water. It was such a nice, recharging solo morning.
We went to the expo, which was PACKED. We did our best to get in and out so we could get back to the resort for more pool + class time.
The four of us all have a lot of big things going in our lives, and we decided at dinner that we just needed some time to chill and not push ourselves to get up early and run a race none of us wanted to run…so we didn’t.
You might think that we then decided to go out and have a wild night in South Beach…but we’re old. We drank some wine and were in bed by 10, and it was amazing. (Yes, we are caricatures of all of those Buzzfeed articles about people in their 30s.)
And now I return to NYC, where it’s hopefully going to be a bit warmer this week. Even if it isn’t, I had a nice little break getting away from the cold.
Have you ever totally just bailed on a race like this? Did it feel this great?
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Can I just say...the pink and green on your blog make me happy! It sounds like you had a perfect weekend. If you had run, it may have been a totally different story and not worth it!
@Chrissy: Thanks! It makes me happy, too :) Yup, that was our thinking. We were having a good, fun, relaxing weekend, and the race seemed like it'd be more stress physically and mentally than worth it.
I almost came down for this race (heading down next weekend actually instead). Given the humidity and temps, I prob would have opted out of the race just as you did..I pulled out of the Hershey Half in October simply because I didn't feel like racing. I felt like running just not racing- no reason to push ourselves to do something we don't feel like doing. Nothing wrong with enjoying yourself in Miami instead at all! Hate to tell you we are expecting snow tomorrow.
I was crazy enough to run the Miami Half under trained (the most I've ran since November is 3 miles) and in this humidity. I was literally drenched in sweat the whole time... I ran it 40 mins slower than my PR time. Had I know it would have been this bad. I might have done the same. I've never run a HOT race like today's.
Only thing- medals were amazing. Otherwise, you made the right choice :)
@Jane: ooooooof. Sorry you had a crappy day but it does kind of solidify my decision :)
I've never 100% bailed on a race but I was supposed to run a full last fall and decided last minute to do the half instead. Didn't regret it one bit. YOLO ;) Looks like you had a blast this weekend regardless. And I totally fit the darn 30's buzzfeed posts as well... heading to bed early is never overrated!
Sounds like you made the right choice and had a fantastic weekend. As much as I love running, there is more to life and sometimes a chill weekend with friends is even better than endorphins.
I love what you and Meggie say about doing what we want. All too often I think we feel pressured into doing what we "should" but life is way too short for that!
I applaud you not running! I'm a big believer in only doing what you want - I've also passed on a race that I was signed up for because I just wasn't feeling it.. and you know what, I felt just as good afterwards because I didn't force myself to do it when I knew I didn't want to!
Bravo for not feeling any guilt!
I ran the marathon yesterday and it was HOT, even by my standards ... and I am from brazil and live here in Miami. In fact, one of my friends (also who trains here) had heat exhaustion and I saw a couple of other people collapse. However, I had trained for this, and I am not sure I am running another marathon EVER so I went for it.
But running is our hobby and not our job. Seems like you were able to enjoy some of what Miami has to offer and that in and of itself is enough in my books.
Hope you enjoyed your time in my neck of the woods.
I trained for the Napa Marathon and just wasn't into it. We went to Napa anyway and enjoyed an amazing, leisurely trip. It was pouring rain the morning of the race, and it felt so nice to lay in bed with coffee and listen to the rain! Sometimes you just have to listen to yourself!
What hotel were you at?! This is exactly the kind of trip I want to take, but haven't found a hotel that offered classes all day. (i'm assuming the classes were free for hotel guests??)