New Run

  So I have to admit, I'm always a little nervous/stressed when I run with someone for the first time.  Will they be faster than me?  What if they are too fast and I have to stop or slow down?  Will they judge me for that?  It's worse than a first date for me.
  Tonight I ran with our new RD.  He and his girlfriend trained for a 1/2 marathon a little while ago so I was extremely nervous to run with him.  I usually run a 10min/mile by myself and when I'm with others, I usually drop down to around a 12min/mile so it's comfortable.  I'm not sure how I did tonight - I actually didn't time it, but I was so stressed over it I developed a neck cramp about a mile in.  Not good.  But I received some good advice on how to prevent/reduce them in the future so I'm going to try it and see if it works.
  I also haven't run outside in about a week so I ended up having to walk about a minute more than I wanted.  When Eryn and I ran, we got a little over a mile in, walked a few seconds (at most, maybe 30) and then ran the final mile straight.  Tonight I was dealing with the neck pain at first and then got a stitch in my side and had to walk a little to get rid of it.  But, I am pretty sure I walked less than a quarter mile so it's all good.
  I'm also realizing how much I miss running with Catherine (my ex-roommate) when I run with other people.  She and I used to do about a 3 mile loop and most nights I could only do it because of our conversations and her telling me "girl, you have no choice, you HAVE to do this!" and I really do miss that.  Having someone better than you makes you want to be better.  I'm hoping that through working with different runners outside of class will help me continue to do more - mileage and time wise and help me come that much closer to my goal of the 10k in October.
  And I finally realized if I run campus at least once a week, I can add some hills into my routine which will help my running and build my endurance again.  Always looking on the bright side! :)