Training Day Has Arrived

I have hated running my entire life. In high school I would lay awake at night anxiously thinking of excuses to avoid running in PE - and I was often absent on run days. I would huff and puff my way around the track with aching calves with a red face and be utterly embarrassed as my graceful classmates would glide by me effortlessly. It was not that I have been a complete couch potato - I enjoy playing tennis and biking and dance-type classes. Give me a Jazzercise class and I can go for hours.

For some reason after I hit 40 I started thinking about running. For many months I pushed away these unaccustomed and surprising thoughts. Going to Zumba, walking the dog and an occasional bike ride were just fine - why would I want to torture myself? But those thoughts would just not go away - and I kept reading about the health and fitness benefits of running and saw how fit my running friends were and how they seemed to thrive on this torture. Maybe I should give it a try. I successfully pushed these traitorous thoughts aside for about a year (I can be quite stubborn), but finally gave in.

For the last year and a half I have slowly - with several starts and stops - been working at becoming a runner. Most of the time I still hate it and have quit for months at a time. My body is usually hollering out in protest that "Stop, this body is not a runner!" However there are days, when I run just a little farther without having to stop or when I persevere even though my calves are killing me and get the the end of the run, that I feel a huge sense of accomplishment. I also love the energy that I have and the more positive mind-set that I have on days when I run.

So, since I have been doing this for 18 months or so, you would think I would have the hang of it now - be ready to run a marathon - or a half marathon at least. Nope. I am the Slowsky Turtle of running. I am still working on getting past 2.5 miles of walk/jog on the gym treadmill in 35 minutes - and less distance than that outside.

In order to push through this barrier I have signed up to do a group training for a 5k race in Aptos in June. Most people - even those that have been sitting on their butts watching cable TV for the past 15 years - could train easily for a 3 mile run in a few weeks. To me - Slowsky Turtle - this will be a monumental undertaking. I am not aspiring to win this race or even have some really notable time. My goals are to run the course more than I have to walk and to not finish last.

I am a great planner. I have all my workouts in my calendar and a hard copy posted by my computer. I have the right shoes and socks and moisture wicking running attire. I know that I will be highly motivated and disciplined for the first week or so.... It is in the long-term implementation that I often have issues. So in addition to the group training twice a week and running on my own two additional days - I am going to keep a weekly blog of my running experiences.

Now I don't really know who would be at all interested in reading about my thoughts and challenges with training for a 5k (my goodness this is not an Ironman!). Yet the process of writing about this journey will be motivating for me and (hopefully) will keep me going when I want to quit.