A friend of mine decided that we should sign up to run a 5K as motivation to get ourselves in shape. We figured, if we pay money to run a race, we’d better actually do it! The price was right for the motivation it would provide over the next few months (MUCH cheaper than any gym membership) so I agreed to it. I began interval training through an online program I found. Thankfully, another good friend agreed to run “with†me (i.e. she ran longer distances on the treadmill next to me). Things were going well, although difficult, until I hit a wall at about 1.5/2 miles. I couldn’t seem to run longer than that distance and it felt like I was dying half of the time. I didn’t really know what to do and I was stuck in that 1.5/2 miles week of the training program, seemingly unable to move forward, literally. So my good friend decided to take me for a run outside: to change up the scenery, see how far I could really go, and not tell me how far we had gone or were going to go. Genius plan, really.
The first time we tried this, we went about 2 miles with frequent breaks. I was tired and frustrated, but determined to try again. So, two days later we went for a run in the morning. When we finally stopped, I was exhausted, but felt pretty good otherwise. I asked my friend how far we had gone…her reply: at least three miles. I literally did not believe her. I accused her of lying to me and was utterly flabbergasted when I finally came around to believing her. It’s amazing what one can accomplish when uninhibited by psychological road blocks and with the encouragement of a good friend =-) During the next few weeks, we ran together and even ran over 5 miles one day! It was incredible and I really felt ready for the race in early May. I’ve always wanted to be a runner and I finally could talk the talk and “walk†the walk.
I finished the race (alongside my friend, whom I also entered in the race as a thank you) in 32:00 minutes; it felt like a victorious blur. During my training, I also trained with some students from a school I substitute taught at, for another 5K which was held two weeks after my first 5K. That race was a lot more difficult, with incredulous levels of humidity and several large hills, for which I had not trained. I ended up walking a few times during this race but still managed to finish in right around 34 minutes.
Since these races, I took a small break from running (not a good plan) and have struggled to maintain my endurance, in part due to the increased heat and humidity but mostly due to my inconsistency in just getting up and running =-( Hopefully I will get back into it more hard core; I never want to have to start running from scratch again. I’m sure life will change and I may not always have time to run, but I want it to be a constant in my life. I really have learned to love it!
P.S. The right running shoes really are worth the cost. I didn’t believe it until I started having serious, lingering pain in my calves and down into the inside of my feet. My friend suggested The Running Company so I went, they watched me run, and diagnosed that I pronate. The first pair of shoes designed for the way I run were AMAZING and the pain in my calves and feet disappeared in just a couple weeks and hasn’t returned.