I am guessing that most people who read this little blog of mine connect to me through Facebook...so you already know about my Thanksgiving Day athletic silliness....but yes I ran a 5k. Well, saying I ran a 5k is actually misleading...I jogged, walked, jogged, walked.
Not sure which I did more, but I did it.
When the race started, Ben stuck with me for a while, until he just couldn't go that slow any more... It was sweet really, he doesn't like to run either and was also bemoaning having signed up..I was nervous after we started because my knee...the one I injured in September...was 'clicking' with every step. After a bit, one of the ladies from Zia found me...Erin...she was jogging near me for a bit and I joked with her that I might jog one song length then walk one song length...of course hoping Stairway to Heaven would come on during one of the walking sections. I actually "ran" for 3 songs, plus half of another before I said to her...thanks for running with me, but I need to walk now. Erin stuck with me for the walking...and the next running song...and the next...
She actually stuck with me the entire course.
I told her not to, but she told me that her first race, someone stayed with her....and she wanted to. We chatted about why people run, why she started to run, we talked about the habit of being so nice that we disappear and forget who we are, we also talked about finding strength and power....and we laughed a bit too.
I also told her why I decided to do this race and what my goals were for that day. I have this joke about myself...this piece of knowledge that I pick up somewhere around middle school that, "I can't run." Now some of this turned out to be from undiagnosed asthma, the rest; became a badge. I told Erin, "I don't want to run with 'that face' today, you know the misery face." I am tired of telling the same old story about myself....I will run what I can and just try to enjoy moving.
Well, I enjoyed my time with Erin, I can say that for certain..and I liked that final nasty hill...but I won't ever 'be a runner,' I don't really like it. As for the runner's high I hear about...I get that when I lift heavy things off the floor. Really....I bet it is the same thing. I get a bit of running in my CrossFit workout, and that is good enough for me.
The question, post race, became, "would I do this again?" hmmmm, maybe, only if I was not training for something else and only to see if I could actually jog the entire time or even perhaps if there is mud and obstacles (and beer) involved. Is there some new burning desire to run? No...but can I see a way that I can stop saying "I hate running," sure.
The funniest thing to me are runners themselves. I cannot tell you how many people I encountered post race that were so happy I was running, so excited because this was obviously the first race of a lifetime of races, so happy, it seemed to me...that I had finally found...um....'real' exercise.
*SIGH*
While I have no desire to "be a runner" I respect those who choose that path... I am amazed by the stamina and the beauty of some runners. I just wish they respected that, just like many many things in life, there are many paths....I am healthy...I am athletic...even though I am not a runner. Really...it is possible!
It kinda reminded me of a freshly sober drinker...
Oh well, we all love what we love and want to share it with people we care about.
And for the record, I finished in just over 45 minutes...with a smile on my face.
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