Reclaiming Running, Reclaiming Myself

In theory, I like to exercise.  I know it is good for me and I’m proud of myself for getting out there and doing it.  In reality, I don’t exercise as much as I should.  I let work and meetings and time-of-day push exercise aside and it doesn’t take too much of those actions to make it a habit and then a way of life.  I used to exercise on average two hours a day but now I feel good if I average 30 minutes a week.  Something had to change.

So I committed some money and I signed up for a half-marathon.  Even better, I convinced Eric that he wanted to run it too.  I have not trained for a race in a long time and Eric never has, so we looked for a race that would get us some lead time for training and would also be weather suitable.  Eric has asthma, so he does not run outside when it’s cold.  He’s willing to run during Saint Louis summer afternoons with heat indices over 100 degrees.  Me, I’m not willing to do that.  Like, ever.  I will suit up and run in wind chills of 8 degrees, though.  We compromised and chose a half-marathon in October. 

Running 13.1 miles in one go isn’t easy but it’s not impossible.  I’d wager that many folks could walk a half-marathon without training – they’d hurt the next day and it would be unpleasant but they could do it.  The event is done in a day and you move on.  My point here is that the half-marathon itself is challenging but not overbearing.  The race is a means to an end; it’s a motivator to put in the real work of training.  Most training programs are 12 weeks long, at least, with the minimum expectation of running 3 – 6 miles twice a week and then an increasingly longer run once a week.  In theory, being this disciplined and running this often is something I could do without the end-goal of a race, but having the race certainly helps me push for longer distances than I would otherwise choose to do. 

Signing up for the race was my birthday present, so we registered in early May.  No one has a training schedule that’s five months long, so I devised one myself and then did something incredibly important.  I scheduled all the runs in my calendar.  Tuesday morning, recurring, 3 – 6 miles.  Thursday morning, recurring, 3 – 6 miles.  Sunday, recurring, increasingly longer runs.  My awesome Google Calendar scheduled my Tuesday and Thursday running events and, with the click of a button, I ensured that they continued indefinitely. 

I’m surprised by how convincing this one action is.  My calendar says it’s a running day, so I run.  Time-blocking for exercise is not something I really tried before, but it’s amazingly effective.  The regimen matters.  I plan for the run, lay out sports bra and shorts the night before, get up early, and get out there. 

And I’m really enjoying it.  I somewhat have a love-hate relationship with running – as many runners do – but I’ve reclaimed a small part of time for just me, a moment for movement and reflection and meditation.  Eric and I rarely run together so the mornings tend to be mine.  I’ve lucked into many long runs in the rain – I’m convinced there’s nothing better for a Saint Louis summer run – and I’m slogged through some heat and humidity that I never imagined enduring.  But I’m keeping at it, and that’s what matters.