Dreams of Running

I've mentioned in the past that sometimes I dream about running. Before my second knee surgery, the amount of running I did in my dreams built slowly. Once, I dreamt I was starting a race down on Crissy Field, not far from the Golden Gate Bridge, but only jogged a short distance before I woke up. Then, there was a 10K dream and few even longer races. I didn't always cross the finish line before I woke up, but sometimes I did and I remember that sense of accomplishment. In some of the dreams I worried that I shouldn't be running and in others, it just felt good to run. I always seemed to be running with minimal impact to my knee or other joints in my body. After my surgery in February the dreams stopped... until last week.

Last week I dreamt I was running down on the Marina Green. It's an area between Crissy Field and Fort Mason in the Marina neighborhood. Each year, the transition area for the Escape from Alcatraz triathlon is located on the Marina Green. Many people run along the paved path next to the street, Marina Boulevard. As I recall the dream, I was running the distance from Crissy Field to where the monkey bars sit just at the edge of the boat marina next to Fort Mason. The short run felt good, although there was that nagging voice in the back of my head saying, "You shouldn't be running yet." Of course, in real life, I am listening to that voice and do not plan to try running until at least the year anniversary from my knee scope. In the meantime, it will be interesting to observe my dreams as my knee gets better. Maybe I'll be running those races or familiar paths in my sleep in no time! I wonder if we burn more calories when we run in dreams, compared to more sedentary dreams? I hope so!