During this month of Thanksgiving and gratitude, I think my legs deserve a shout-out. They do a lot for me every day and it’s easy to forget to thank them!

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Hey Legs,

I know I get annoyed at you for your hair growing abilities, and sometimes neglect in keeping you silky smooth; however, I really do appreciate you and I need to take a moment to thank you for all you do…

We’ve been through a lot over the years; in fact, my rough conservative estimate has us logging about 30,400 miles together since we started training for our first marathon in 1997. I’m well aware of our miles together in high school, college, and the early years post-college, but I just can’t put a number on those miles. Please don’t think I don’t appreciate every one of those steps as well.

You do a pretty amazing job of keeping me upright on the uneven rock and root covered trails I ask you to run on, but you’ve got to admit that those size 9.5 trail shoes help a lot in giving me a firm foundation on the ground. Even so, without those strong muscles jumping in to help, we both know that I’d be flat on my face in the dirt.

I do my best at keeping your quads and hamstrings strong and flexible. I treat you to lunges, squats,extensions, presses, and curls; and when you start acting cranky, I bring out the yoga strap and foam roller for some special pampering. I balance on the BOSU on one leg to fire up your little stabilizing muscles, and I stand on my toes to engage your calves. Heck, I even fire up the ole tibialis anteriors on occasion to help prevent shin splints.

You rarely complain when I ask you to carry me for miles only to turn around and demand that you carry me back to where we started. You never ask where we’re going or why, you just deliver. In fact, when I take a few days off from running, you seem to complain even more than I do by twitching and jumping needlessly as I’m trying to fall asleep. Another run out on the trail seems to be all it takes to get you back into a good mood. 

I know you didn’t like it when I submerged you in ice baths after demanding that you carry me for 26.2 miles on many occasions, and even 50 miles once, but I did it for your own good. You have to admit that you felt better once I dried you off and spent the rest of the day lounging on the sofa.

I apologize for embarrassing you when I walked backwards down stairs for several days after each of those marathons. I know it made you look like wimps, but I wasn’t woman enough to put up with your dysfunctional quads screaming at me for being asked to descend stairs. You had performed well on race day, and that was all that I could ask for.

I’m sorry that I ripped the skin off your right shin when I slipped running bleachers during track practice in high school.  Please forgive me for burning a tennis ball size spot on your inner calf when I touched you against the baffle on my motorcycle; and I give you my sincerest apologies for that ugly scar that exploded on your right knee after that early morning icy fall that took off all of the skin, but didn’t even make a hole in my running tights – yes, I’m still baffled by that one.

Thank you for putting up with the three-month-long healing process of the surgery to remove the melanoma from your lower right shin, and thanks for healing into a whimsical scar. Some people think at first glance that it’s a peace sign tattoo, and I know you did that just to look cool. 

You two have been the best, and I can’t wait to see where you take me in the future! 

Fondly,
Deb

P.S. Want to go on a run?

 

  • Questions:
  • Which body part are you most thankful for?
  • What would you tell your legs?
  • Did you race this past weekend?