and at about 7, i felt i could go no longer.

We had our eleven mile run and it's crazy to think that is only 2 miles less than the real thing! We ran up the highway 101 and ran back on the beach. Because of where we started, we had a longer way back to our ending point. I think it was something like 4 miles out and then 7 miles back which is pretty deceiving when you think of your turning point being half way. Don't get me wrong, I was fully aware of our route. On our run back on the beach, at our 7 mile point I started to lose my steam. I couldn't stop thinking about how far our ending point was. I wasn't tired, I was mentally losing steam. The entire run would be around 2.5 hours of running (I'm a very slow runner folks but I'm improving) and the thought of running that far and long was exhausting. I had run out of things to talk about with Cameron because I was only dreading what I had ahead.

Frankly, I was fighting it-- fighting the fact that I had to run.

"You're going to have to talk me through this one, Cameron." The line sounded too familiar to something I had said to him during childbirth. I had turned into a running, whining baby.
Up ahead on the almost empty beach, I saw a young man walking with a woman. He turned back to say something to a friend when I recognized that hair.
"Cameron!" I said with quiet excitement. I got a boost of energy as I realized who it was. Walking along the shore was Rob Machado, a famous surfer who I had seen before but never on an empty beach. My pace suddenly picked up as Cameron laughed at my star struckness. I contemplated saying hi as we ran by but considering this area was his local spot, I decided to keep my cool. I ran by excitedly and my energy kept me going. I didn't look back and I was regretting the fact that I didn't have my phone with me for the best ever photog jog. And to top it off, the sunset was unreal-- unreal I tell you. The cloudless sky was lit even after the sun went down and the water turned into an electric blue with an orange sky. Boy did I wish I had my camera.
Through the rest of the run, we had plenty to talk about as the sun set to our left. And at the end, oh my was it good to be finished.

Do I like running yet?

Let me answer it this way: I have learned why I haven't liked it in the past. I fought it with all my energy the entire time. I despised every second and mile of it. Am I a runner? No. I'm I an athlete? Of course not. But I have learned to train and to bear with it, to realize that it will feel amazing afterwards and that post-run feeling is what I love. My positive running mentality is what matters most. And heaven forbid that a pro surfer doesn't appear out of the blue on an empty beach to give me some extra adrenaline, I better have the right mindset to keep going and finish.

Rob Machado with Blake Lively for a shoot in Vogue, June 2010

Post note: Since this post, we have ran our 12 mile which was surprisingly easier than the 11 mile. We are now decreasing in mileage until the real run. Our longest run being 8 this week! Nice.