Playlist

In case you haven't heard (or read), I'm running a 5K in August in honor of my Dad. This last Saturday, at approximately 10am, I started training.

Given that I have grown, birthed and sustained a human being since the last time I ran, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Especially after what happened the last time I started running:

That's me after my inaugural run two years ago. I made it halfway around Como (3/4 of a mile) before I calmly collapsed.
 
The good news is, this time I remained on my feet and ran farther then I thought I could. The bad news is, I ran a little farther then I should because I lost the use of my legs in the days that followed. My quads turned to mush, my shins began to splint and I had to rely on my arms to lower myself onto a toilet – I no longer had the trust of my trunks. Big picture, I survived and I managed to keep my breakfast bagel down. How? I have no idea… but I do have a theory. Actually, I have a playlist.

Shawn likes to run to the sounds of nature, his feet pounding the pavement and his own thoughts. In other words, he runs sans iPod. Me? I need distraction, I need motivation and I need a good beat. I need my iPod Shuffle and I need Rodrigo Y Gabriela.

"The dynamic range of this music is startling. It is both ancient and futuristic, carnally frenetic and romantically seductive, artfully — and even spiritually — played yet drenched in the vulgarity of street life." –iTunes Album Review

Their cover of Metallica's Orion single-handedly, and quite literally, kept me on my feet. I had made it one entire time around (1.6 miles) and was striving to reach the dock (2.5 miles) of my second lap, when I suddenly felt the shakes, some fierce sweat and a lot of saliva. So I stopped. The onset of pain was immediate and I wanted nothing more then to let gravity take me to the dirt and put me out of my misery. I was swallowing like a mo-fo, resting my arms on any surface I could find, raising my head to reach some oxygen while saying a little prayer and forcing myself not to faint. Then Orion came on. The intro alone saved my soul and my soles and slowly but surely I managed to put one foot in front of the other long enough to catch my breath and feel somewhat sturdy, or at the very least, stable. I not only managed to stay upright, I managed to comfortably walk the rest of the way around, completing my 3.2 miles for the day. Sure, I didn't run them all, but I did run at least 2 miles. And that, my friends, is progress.

Got any playlist additions? Suggestions? Requests? If it moves you, it's sure to motivate me and I'll take all the help I can get!