Guyanese Work Out Plan

Cue alarm clock buzzing at 6:15am. I hop out of bed and almost step on a cockroach. I scream and promptly hop back into my bed, a good warm up. I kill the cockroach with a shoe and move on to arm strengthening with the back door. I manage to unlock and pry it open and head to the bathroom for Mosquito swatting. After I swing my flip flops wildly to kill about 5 or so Mosquitoes, I get dressed in my conservative running capris and t-shirt. I click my watch timer and head out of the gate. As I see my neighbors, I practice my "Good Morning" breathing techniques and hand waves. Suddenly, an angry, barking dog appears and I sprint faster down the street, good way to get the adrenaline going. Around the bend, I work on my agility by avoiding potholes, dead frogs, piles of animal poop, and other random obstacles (one day it was a whole cow skeleton). I get some curious stares from large cows and continue on my way. In the home stretch down the main road, truck drivers and other motorist try scare tactics by honking their horns to shake me off my route, but I keep going. I turn down the path towards my house and look at my watch. The numbers are rolling a little past 5.00. I look up at the familiar road ahead and repeat the loop until tired; sometimes saying Good Morning again to the same neighbors (Opps!).

Guyana Pepper Pot!  Recipe to follow!

Pretty much all of my community knows that I run in the mornings. I have walked around and met new neighbors and they always identify me as "that running girl". I don't always see them, but they definitely see me. If I run closer to 6am, there is barely anyone out and only a few cars on the road, which is nice. I also say "Good Morning" to almost everyone I see because it is polite and it avoids men from sipping or making comments when I run by. Unfortunately, I forget who I have said it to (it is early) and sometimes end up greeting people twice. My new biggest fan is a light tan dog that will wag his tail excitedly when he sees me and he will run about 2 feet behind me for a good stretch. I am sure this helps me blend in even more. I guess it is better than the first time I tried my loop in the afternoon. I had a whole group of young kids trying to run with me, in which I stopped running, found some bubbles I brought with me, and just played with them. Although my loop is only around a 5 min run, I am happy to report that every week I am doing more and more laps. This means that I feel more comfortable running in my community, everyone now expects to see me, and I need to do something to combat all the delicious curries, pepper pot, and bake I've been eating.

Hope all is well!

-KB