Let me entertain a thought with y’all. I admit I am heavily influenced by what I read and while I have been waiting for my holds to come in I downloaded My Year of Running Dangerously from the available audiobooks section on the library app. The book is about CNN anchor, Tom Foreman’s, journey from barely running to running a marathon to running an ultra marathon (55 miles) over the course of a year.
I like feats of endurance stories and after running my 5K last week (after years of absence from official events) I think I did want a little inspiration on running to see where it took me. I’ve done a half marathon in my past (six years ago now) and have run on and off throughout my life. This spring and summer I’ve run consistently, doing 4 mile runs most days and a 5-miler on the weekend. It’s felt good to get back into running again. On days where I skip a run, I am noticeably off and lethargic. I just plain feel better if I spend some time moving every day.
Getting back into running has been a slow process — it wasn’t my goal. During a stressful season at work, I wanted to be outside more and more to hike off the stress and one day felt like I wanted to get my walk done a little faster. To my own surprise, I found that my time spent hiking, taking Zumba and kickboxing classes, and lifting weights meant that I could run my normal hiking route all the way.
I’ve had a complicated relationship running in the past. After my half marathon, I started training for a full but hurt my knee a couple of months out. It was my fault, a result of poor training, and completely devastating. I didn’t run the full and for a long time, I didn’t run at all. During my marriage, there was pressure to run from my partner, but the motivation wasn’t my own and got all mixed up in my body image and lovability. I wasn’t running for myself, so I stopped running.
It’s been a small miracle to run again and realize that it is just for me. It’s not so I’ll be loved or thin for anyone else, but because I want to feel strong for me.
So back to the point . . . I listened to this audiobook yesterday and this morning upped my normal 5-mile weekend run to a 6-miler. I think I might want to try some longer runs again. It’s been ages since my half marathon or any 10K race and honestly, I’m not sure how my knee will feel on longer distances (it hasn’t hurt in months), but I’m debating with myself. I’ve been running just to run, with no goal, just to exercise, no ambition. Do I want to add some training goals? Do I have time to prioritize that in my life? Am I only asking this because I have a little break from my intense writing sessions and feel like I have the time?
There’s a 10 mile run in Austin in 6 weeks and I’m mulling it over if I want to sign up. I might take the next couple weeks and attempt some longer runs to see how it feels before I commit.
I’ll keep you posted.
With Love,
Natalie