How I Fell in Love With Running

For those of you who know me, you know that I am a runner.  I plan my life around races.  Seriously.  I have a second job to help pay for running gear and races.  (Did you know that half marathons are around $100?? It's nuts.)  However, I didn't know I loved running so much until I actually did it, 9 years ago.

I was living in Phoenix, Arizona, with my parents after not finding a job after graduate school.  Summers in Arizona are scorching hot, so I honestly don't know why I thought this was a good time to start.  But looking back on it, if you are going to do anything that's hard, you might as well do it when it's REALLY hard.  Like in the Arizona summer heat.  I found myself tired of looking at a computer screen applying for jobs, tired of being stuck inside in the air conditioning, so it really was a Forrest Gump moment for me.  I just felt like running!

I bought new tennis shoes (not even RUNNING shoes!) and a new sports bra.  I loaded some songs on my click wheel iPod, and I told myself I would make it to the light post around the block and back.  I did it, and it was HARD, but I did it.  The next day, I told myself I would make it to the light poll two blocks away.  Every day I pushed myself a little bit further.  I did walk, don't get me wrong, but I covered the distance I set out to do every night.

Almost immediately I could feel a difference in my lungs and overall sleep.  I fell asleep faster, felt like my lungs were clearer, and with a new goal to hit every day, I was motivated to do more.

I didn't have a GPS watch, so I used MapMyRun.com to map out a route with a specific distance around our neighborhood.  Pretty soon I was covering a 2.5 mile distance every night and it felt awesome!

I ran my first 5k in October of 2009 after only a few months of running and it wasn't timed, which was for the best!  I felt so awesome being able to cover that distance.  I'm competitive by nature, so I continued to challenge myself to go further and faster.

I'm not going to sugar coat it: running hurts.  Even for someone who is in shape, it hurts.  But those are the runs that make you better.  Learning to push past the minor pain and discomfort makes you a better runner, and makes your body better.

Running isn't everyone's cup of tea, but even if you cover a couple of miles a day you will notice a difference in your overall health.  And who knows; maybe you will find something that gives you your "You time", something you will make time to do just for you.  Because you deserve it!

Cheers!
Kasey