Runners are a little bit crazy. Yes, I said it. All you have to do is scroll through the posts in any of the Facebook groups I belong to. We are obsessed.
I didn’t used to identify myself as a runner. Some days my body definitely does not define itself as a body that runs, yet I find myself falling into this crazy category. I love running.
Holy cow. My thirteen-year-old self would have rolled her eyes and laughed like crazy at that statement. I used to HATE exercise in any form. I was pretty much terrified of playing sports and getting hurt.
It didn’t help that my mother was crazy anxious about my health because of my father’s heart disease. I was forced to use his exercise bike and work out (I HATED THAT MACHINE.) The physical fitness tests in gym were torture (except for the stretching ones, I was super flexible), because I could not run a mile. I could not breathe when I ran. My gym teacher told my mom I was badly out of shape. My mom believed him and I ended up having even more forced exercise to do so I could get in shape. I was not out of shape. As an adult, I figured out that I had exercise-induced asthma.
I don’t exactly know why, but when I got an inhaler, I learned to control my breathing and I went to work. Couch to 5k was my first companion and then a training plan for a 10K run. I worked up to running an hour straight and then more than an hour. It was never very fast, but it was running.
In the work, I discovered a euphoria I never had experienced before. Running made me feel powerful. I was able to control my body and regulate my breathing and conquer my goals. It was amazing.
Then, I hurt my knee. I had to stop running. There was talk of surgery, but I didn’t want to do that. So, I resigned myself to not running. I could find plenty of other ways to exercise.
Fast forward ten years or so. I never found anything that came close to giving me the same thrill and sense of power. So, I started slowly and worked up to running again using the run-walk-run method.
For about a year now, I have been steadily working on it. I am in a bunch of running groups on Facebook and it is such a community. So many people are out there that really understand the compulsion and the runner’s high. I also love the Peloton app for run coaching. It has been so motivating.
I will never be an elite runner. I will probably never be very fast. There might also be long pauses in my running journey or even the need to stop again (that pesky knee sometimes rears its ugly head). However, I can firmly and proudly say that I am a crazy runner. And I hope I will be one for a long time to come.
This post is a part of the 14th annual Slice of Life Story Challenge. After a few years away, I am challenging myself to write every day in March this year, along with an amazing community of other bloggers. You can find our writing linked up on the Two Writing Teachers blog.
Andrea, I know what you mean about running! I haven’t done it in years (I’ve got two knees that don’t let me move faster than a speed-walk), but the feeling is incredible. Keep doing what makes you feel good–be a crazy runner!
I was so glad to see your title in the comment feed! I am a runner but have taken a break after running everyday for a long stretch of time. When I stopped running last year and started walking I thought I would never come back to it.
Just this week, I felt the itch like that part of my identity was knocking on a little door saying, “Helllooooo, I am still here thank you very much!”
I got my new shoes today. I am not fast and it is still a mix of running and walking but I am running again and it feels wonderful.
I smiled when you referenced your younger self – my teenaged self would never have believed that I would become a runner at 42. A slow runner, but still a runner. It’s funny how life changes.
I admire your persistence. I know I need to move more, and that gets harder the older I get! You inspire me.