I backed off on my 4.5 mile plan for today and only did 2. I didn't get out until 11 and it was just too humid. My breathing was too fast and my heart rate was too high, so I thought I needed a rest day. Tomorrow is a big day--doing intervals and lifting, so I don't feel so bad about the break today.

I had an epiphany today. I realized I'm afraid of hills. As I was running today, I noticed that when I felt like stopping, I'd look ahead and decide what to do based on that. If it's flat, I tell myself, "Oh, it's flat here, you can keep this pace." If a hill is looming, I'll give in. I do this all the time. I climb almost every hill with this personal mantra running through my head: "It doesn't matter how slow you run, as long as you're running."

Now that I've identified this weakness, I want to do something about it. So one time this week I'm going to run hill intervals. Run up, walk down, repeat. I won't ever do the race to the top of Pike's Peak (those crazy fools) or anything, but I'm hoping that I'll feel stronger next week.