This upcoming weekend is the 3 year anniversary of my "running."
Those who know me well know that I use the term "running" lightly. I move/shuffle along on either the bike path by my work or on a treadmill. I am not fast. But, I do have stamina and sheer determination to just keep on going. Part of why I keep on going is the running community has made me feel very welcomed and you never know what you are going to see out there! And I have seen a lot (too much really!) - everything from a man getting chest compressions to bare naked behinds. Seriously. Better than TV most days!
In these 3 years I have logged literally thousands of miles. That is astounding to me. I am a couch potato who does not like to sweat. But, I have come to embrace it! I have completed countless 5Ks (though I probably could count all those t-shirts!), 3 10Ks and 4 half marathons! Holy Cow! I have also spent $$$$$$$$$$ on shoes, clothes (sports bras are pricey!), entry fees and photos. All worth it!
I prefer running to a team sport. Out there, it is all me. I can only depend on myself to get there and back. Also, no one is depending on me, so if I am having a bad day, it is ok.
Recently, I was lunching with my family at our local Olive Garden when a waiter approached, pointed at my shirt and said "Hey, how did you do?" At first, I was confused, but then I realized that I was wearing my 2013 Athens Half Marathon shirt. We chatted for a few minutes about the course, the great weather that day and our various injuries. Another reminder that the running community is real and accepting, even of a middle-aged over-weight woman!
Photos from the 2013 Athens Half Marathon!
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While perusing on-line I came across this article & it made me laugh at loud!
9 Reasons Running Doesn't Suck as Much as You Think
1. You can lose weight by drinking nothing but hot water with lemon OR you can run for an hour, treat yourself to a cookie and still fit into your skinny jeans! One of these options makes you bitchy. The other makes you rad.
2. Take your iPod with you and runs suddenly become a safe place to indulge your love of boy-band music. :)
3. When your boss, your melodramatic friend and your nagging to-do list won’t leave you alone, calmly put on your running shoes and head out the door. They won’t follow you. It’s a safer alternative to storming out with both middle fingers in the air (though you can -and should- still do this in your head, just for spectacular effect).
4. You’ll discover lululemon pants are good for more than just buying tampons and Cheez-its at Target (I know, ladies. My world was rocked with that discovery, too.).
5. Running is the last place you have to “be a lady.” Sweat, snot and sneaking behind a bush to pee is not only liberating it’s fun, in that giggly-childish-naughty kind of way.
6. Getting a run in before happy hour means you get tipsy on half a glass of wine instead of your usual two. That’s not being a lush, that’s just sound economic planning!
7. Studies have shown that runners have better sex. Sex counts as a cross-training workout, which in turn makes you a better runner, which – hello! – leads to even better sex. Really, the whole thing is full of win-wins.
8. Girls are lucky; there’s an entire industry committed to making us look awesome while getting our sweat on. Workout clothes come in all sorts of cool colors and designs. Jockstraps, on the other hand, will always be ugly with questionable stains....
9. Non-runners will sit on the couch and call you crazy. Those folks, sadly, will never learn what their bodies are capable of. You, on the other hand, will die knowing you completely, totally, unabashedly used up the body that was loaned to you. That’s not crazy. That’s freakin’ awesome!
