What a difference the sun makes! This morning before the sun even rose, the birds on the trail were going crazy. It started with the woodpecker pounding away in the dark, but then became a crazy chirping symphony as the dawn broke. Without even looking out the window, I knew the sky was going to be clear because of those birds. It was chilly, but windless. In spite of the change in attitude, my legs still feel beat. I ate a ton of protein yesterday. After talking to Marion at lunch I was more certain than ever, that I have been too lazy at good protein replacement in the past 6 months. I think I've actually lost muscle mass. I am about 3 pounds lighter than normal (for no apparent reason) and my legs don't seem to recover as quickly from my harder or longer work-outs. I think I'm missing that combination of zinc, magnesium, iron, and protein. So yesterday I forced myself to eat a hamburger patty and almost threw it back up. I also ate a can of beans and had a protein shake. I have been so bad about my diet since about November. I haven't been careful enough to eliminate sugar and replace meat with good sources of protein. This could explain my sluggishness and lack of muscular stregth. Anyway, on the trail, I saw one of my hawks flying with a rat in its talons, and a whole flock of yellow headed blackbirds. Their yellow chests were so bright in the sun, it made me realize how long it's been since I've seen any birds since fall. I also so a huge egret fly out of the bird reserve, it's huge long legs trailing behind those enormous outstretched wings. I was tired after the run and did extra stretching. I have no explaination for why I'm so tired all the time, even though I haven't had a really hard work out for about a week. | 