A couple of months ago, a close friend of mine remarked that anyone could run a half-marathon. We were discussing the merits of running (something I'd always wanted to do) and he was trying to convince me how easy it was to take it up. My response was skeptical to say the least. Running had always seemed a little 'super-human' to me: something that required proper discipline and patience - neither of which I am known for.
But I'd always imagined of someday just cruising down a pavement, hearing the leaves crunch under my feet, feeling the cool breeze on my face, feeling the rush you get after a really good workout. To me, the thought of running was liberating and empowering. I wanted to run for two reasons:
a) On some level I wanted to break with tradition: In my culture, girls don't run/race or ride bikes in public once they reach puberty. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, but since you've never grown up running in public, doing so in your late-twenties requires a little bit of courage.
b) Secondly, having struggled with my weight my whole life, I knew being a runner would mean that I would have to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Even building up to 15 or 20 mins of continuous running would require that I consistently exercise, make the right nutritional choices, and not give up. I was (at this time) a healthy and fit person - I went to the gym every day for over an hour and ate well. But taking up running would be the true test of whether all my hard work was paying off. And it would ensure that I continued my efforts.
Running wasn't just a one-time thing - it was a commitment! It wasn't like going to an aerobics class or hitting the cardio machines where everything was all over and done with in an hour. Running required day to day changes in the way I functioned. Running wasn't a one-night stand; it was a marriage. There would be off-days when I wouldn't be feeling so great, and there would be days when nothing could go wrong. And I'd have to manage them all, if I wanted it to work.
And so I began in April. At first, I could barely run for a minute straight. I looked up some good walk/jog programs on Runners World and used those to build up my stamina and my speed. It took time and patience and the odd setback to get me where I am today. But I was surprised by how quickly my body adapted - before I knew it I was running five minutes straight, then ten, then twenty.. It's been almost seven months now since I've been running consistently and I'm proud to say I've built up to a continuous 4 miler (I've done three 5-mile runs too but they've been spaced so far apart that I'm discounting them). I just ran my first official 5K race on the 26th of September at the Seattle AIDS walk and I'm running my second on October 4th. All of this will (hopefully) eventually lead to the Seattle Half-Marathon on November 29th, 2009.
Through all of this, I've drawn my strength and motivation from that one person I mentioned at the beginning of this post. He's served as my coach, my cheerleader and my running partner. And now, with my heart set on running my first half-marathon in a few weeks, I know I can count on him to meet me at the finish line.
Read on to find out how I'm doing! :)
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