Was it H1N1? Sickness yields some positives

So I got sick. Sicker than I'd been in a long, long time. Had no fever, then a fever, then no fever. Felt beaten down. I was out of the loop for 10 days. No exercise at all. That's how down for the count I was. On the one day I felt "good" (the 4th day) I went out for an easy run. Ended up feeling dizzy, nauseous and lightheaded after 20:00 and had to walk a few minutes before jogging the rest of the way home. The next day, fever, and total relapse for a few days after that. On the 11th day I finally woke up not feeling one bit sick and decided to run until I felt tired. Got an easy 8 miles in at about an 8:30 pace. My body was ready to break loose. And today (the 12th day), I feel good. Was able to run 6 easy miles, although I felt tired for the last couple. I'm knocking on wood that I don't relapse.

Here's the thing, not doing any real exercise for 10 days set my legs back quite a bit. Now they tire before my lungs. My first "hard" effort will be this Saturday at another Cross Country race, and I'm looking forward to it. I just have to be careful to listen to my body out there, and reel it in if my body feels like its falling apart.

A positive came out of this sickness... my youngest is finally toilet trained!!! While laying on the couch almost the entire time I was sick, I could really watch my son (as there wasn't much else to do), and I picked up on a lot of his physical cues for needing "to go." Now he's a pro. Heck, he should be because he'll be 4 in a couple of months.

I also spent a lot of time with my husband and older kids. Being around them as much as I was made me realize how much focus I put into running and training. It made me kind of sad. Being sick definitely made me realize I need to maintain some balance in my life! Running is not my job (although I can dream). Right now being a full time mom is my job. Running is my all time favorite hobby. I have to keep those priorities in line! Running, while important, really is just a hobby for me.

And my hobby led me to register for a half marathon in a few weeks, and a marathon in December. Despite all the training ahead, I still won't lose sight of what is #1.