I’ve noticed another side effect of skipping runs during the week. I can’t breathe! I run Monday, Wednesday and Friday like clockwork. Sometimes Sundays with a friend too. Last week, after helping a desperate husband work through his homework two nights in a row, rescuing a sister with a dead car and fully enjoying a “date night” said husband planned out completely for us, there was little time or energy left for a 3-mile run. And I never use the “no time” excuse, because I don’t believe in it. But staying up so late was taking a toll and my body needed rest. I did sneak in a relaxing 30-minute yoga workout and my husband and I got a little sweaty playing darts on our date, so it wasn’t like I completely abandoned my active lifestyle.

But by Thursday and Friday, I felt like I wasn’t breathing right, like my lungs weren’t getting enough air. The shallow breaths and idleness of my body were screaming for cardio. I had to stop and do some deep breathing just to feel OK. Don’t get me wrong though, because I’m not complaining. These reactions are all the more motivation to keep running. Me and running, we’ve got a good thing going. We don’t like to be apart for long.