I'm back to running 4-5 days a week, and I'm also running hills again. Hill repeats had always intimidated me. When I read about other mother runners running them, I always thought that hills were for real runners, not me.
Well, hello, I'm a real runner! And hill repeats are now one of my favorite things.
Except for Hilda.
I have a hill route that I run - it's just up and down my rural country road. I run three miles - three different hills. Two hills I run twice and one I run three times.
And then there's Hilda.
There is this hill right before my driveway. For lack of imagination, I've named her Hilda.
OK so that looks pretty pathetic. Hilda doesn't look bad at all!
But pictures just aren't conveying the feeling I get
when I stand at the bottom and look up.
And then she continues around the corner, and heads upward some more.
She's not an exceptionally long hill. Or steep hill. But I have a fear of Hilda.
I don't know what it is. I've avoided running up her for the last 2.5 years. She is certainly steeper than what I normally run. But there is no reason why I can't just crank on up the slope.
So I did just that this morning. I said to myself - get your rear end up that hill. Is Hilda stronger than you? No, Ma'am, she is not. I ran up the Queensboro Bridge in the NYC Marathon last year for crying out loud! I'm going to let a little hill defeat me?
So up I went.
I almost made it to the top without collapsing. My Garmin beeped 3 miles (Done!) before I reached the top. How's that for a lame excuse to quit Hilda?
But she's not going anywhere. Hilda will still be there next week. And the week after that. And the marathon after that. I'll be racing up Hilda before I know it.
And the good thing is that my driveway is right at the top of Hilda. So I can just collapse on my own turf when I'm done with her.
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