A runner's balanced life~

This week has been a travel week.  I took my running gear with me to the USM Children’s Book Festival to try to get in some running in between sessions or early in the morning.

Many of you know that when I’m not running, I’m a children’s picture book author / illustrator.   To be able to meet and network with so many authors, illustrators, publishers and librarians is such a rare, golden treat, I simply must make hay while the sun shines.  So, I spent most of my waking hours talking over breakfast, lunch and dinner, during the presentations and walking to the bookstore about e-books, library funding and hilarious children’s books.

This has absolutely nothing to do with running, except the fact that this travel and conference kept me from running and was a bit of a bump in the road to my training. 

However, one important fact stands out.  Balance.  When one takes on the three to four month training for these long distance endurance races, one must have balance in one’s life.  This week was balance time.  I had to mix (and balance) my work life and family life with my running life.  Don’t we have to do that every week, anyway?

To not run for three days is something of a blessing because it gave my body a chance to rest and repair.  I did a lot of walking while on the campus of USM, but it wasn’t running.  Still, I’m OK with that.  When I get back to my schedule tomorrow, I think I’ll feel a little stiff in the joints, but it will quickly come back to me.

To successfully balance a running life with the other facets of life is the true goal of the runner.

Gotta run,

Chuck

The Vagabond Runner.