I'm going to run a half-marathon. (13 miles to be exact)
I picked up running the summer before I entered high school. I ran 1.5 miles everyday. I'm not sure what quite caused this burst of running obsession, but it quickly died when I actually entered high school.
After that, running was mostly on and off. Sometimes I would go running week after week, and then months and months without even thinking about it. If I did run, it was for exercise/health's sake. I actually really hated the idea of running.
Sophomore year rolled around, and when you become an adult, you do things that you don't like to do.
Running was one of those things.
I made running/exercising a priority and was partially successful in accomplishing this goal. It wasn't until my junior year that I really started thinking of running in a new light.
Running became an outlet. It was, and still is, such a great way for me to have time to myself, to have time and space for me to organize my thoughts/feelings and not feel guilty about it!
During my time in DC, I ran everyday. Being in an office for 10 hours day can really mess you up, so I would exercise after work.
Over the weeks, I could feel the strength in my legs and the improvement in my ability to exercise longer.
It was empowering.
Something I disliked so much before was now something I could do.
And there is something so gratifying when you look at the distance that you came from and realize how much you can do if you only just put yourself to it.
So training starts next week, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. My stomach gets all tied up when I think about running my first race.
I'll be running the Utah Valley Marathon. It starts near the mouth of Sundance and ends at the Provo Tabernacle Park. For those who finish under 4 hours, you get a fancy medal. All fees/proceeds go towards the Children with Cancer foundation. {How can you beat that? A medal, a sense of accomplishment and reward, AND a charitable cause!}
Like the caption says below,
Pain you enjoy.
No comments:
Post a Comment