Running: I think I might like you!

By Gaby -
Umm. Okay, so my weekly menu planning fell through mid-week. I'm ashamed. BUT....you know what, it's cool, because on Memorial Day, I ran a 5k on my own accord. So I feel slightly redeemed, goal-wise. Sunday, I only managed to run about 2 miles, then the 5k on Monday, and tonight I ran 4 miles w/ Ryan. I'm so excited, because every time I go for another run, I swear I enjoy it more; it feels good to do something that's good FOR you without the aid or nag of someone else pushing you. When I went for my first run maybe last October (I think), I couldn't even run a whole mile without stopping to catch my breath. I didn't run again for a couple of months until wintertime, and again, I couldn't ( or thought I couldn't!) get past a mile without walking a bit. The first 5k I participated in was at the end of March of this year , and that was a hard one for me. I ran a few more times with a friend in between that one and the second race I did in the middle of May, and that's when I noticed a slight improvement in my endurance for more distance. Still not as good as I'd like, but I can tell I'm getting better, and that's a huge encouragement to keep at it.

I don't know if this is unreasonable, but my personal goal for this year is to run the Columbus half-marathon this October. At first I thought I should go for the whole marathon, but that might be pushing it. I'm pretty certain I should train longer and condition my body a bit before I even attempt a marathon. But if I can make it to the half-marathon, then my next goal will be the Cincinnati Marathon a year from now.

By the way, I highly recommend running to anyone; I can't believe I've lived this long and never experienced any physical activity or sport long enough to realize the benefit of both its competitive and invigorating nature. I did ballet for 10 years, but I think that might be slightly different. I was also younger and more flexible. Not sure I could do all those splits in the doorway nowadays. Bleh.

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