Although the past two weeks have kept me from blogging, the running continues. Once again, I had to deal with stomach aches and sleepless nights on top of the transfer of my website to a new server, which became an ordeal until I finally outwitted the Internet and found a shortcut that saved me a lot of headaches.
The trouble with the website was worrisome for me. For years, my site, www.edbond.com, has been a source of information about a treatment for canine distemper and it continues to be a main portal through which people now find the Kind Hearts In Action site.
But the server was recently hacked, and long story short, I had to make a move. When the discussion board didn't make the transfer, I was beside myself. A lot of personal stories about people's fight with distemper and advice on how to care for dogs could have been lost.
But it's back now!
Anyway, the computer trouble left me with no desire to spend any more time than necessary typing in front of a screen. So, I let the running blog slide. Sorry.
But the actual running continued. It was a week ago Wednesday that I finally got back to one-hour runs. The earlier layoff was still holding me back. I don't seem to run with the same energy as I did back in June. But I'm running. I decided to not stress about finishing more distance in less time and just be glad to get a good one-hour workout.
Amy had sent me a column on running that pointed out that getting an hour of exercise was key because at that amount you've raised your metabolism to a level that will stay elevated all day.
I've been alternating between 1-hour runs and 48-minute runs. On days when I run for 48 minutes, I try to run a mile with the boys and sometimes with Romeo. But a few of those had been truncated because the boys might complain about various aches and pains. Especially with Liam, at 7-years-old, I see no reason to make him run through pain. At that age and even at Jack's age, I think pain should be taken as a warning to stop and take a break.
Liam's time in the mile has been improving dramatically. He's dropped from 18 minutes to 17 minutes to 16:26 and then 16:06. On his last run, he finished in 15:19 and he beat everyone, including me and Romeo. Jack was dealing with stomach pain and knee pain and finished last.
They both need to keep up the running. They've both started practice for fall sports, Liam for soccer and Jack for baseball. Liam's soccer field will be larger this year, so he will have a lot more running to do.
As for me, I like my running routine, especially the tiny little adventures that happen on my route. I noticed the other day that a house on Redwing with a Green Bay Packers mailbox was next to a house with a Steelers mailbox. And the Steelers mailbox was right across the street from a Patriot's mailbox. I bet that neighborhood has some great arguments during football season.
The other day I got chased by a dog on Meadowlark. It came off its front lawn and crossed the road after me. I kept running in the same direction I was, didn't even change my pace until the dog finally gave up and went home. You'd think after my adventure in helping to save Rusty back in July that the dogs in the neighborhood would have gotten word that I was an OK guy. I guess not.
Oh well, the dog is doing what it believes to be right. It may need training, but dogs are innocent. It is the owners and how the owners treat their dogs that are responsible for their behavior. The dogs look to us for everything, and when we bring a dog into our lives as our pet, we make a promise to do whatever we can to give them a good life.
That is one of the reasons why I work so hard on the issue of canine distemper. It is because I know that dogs do not need to die of this disease. If you like, please check out our Kind Hearts In Action site to find out why we think that.
It is a belief that goes against the doctrine of the mainstream veterinary community, and I guess I'm pretty stubborn if I'm going to stand against the opinions of so many important people. The bottom line is I'm trying to prove that the impossible is possible.
For the past few years, I had considered a return to running impossible. My weight had gotten so out of control there was little hope of getting back into fitness. But then it occurred to me -- I'm very stubborn guy and I don't like giving up. If I wasn't going to give up on dogs, then I shouldn't give up on myself.
That was when I decided to start running again.
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