Yeah...how weird is that? Me, the girl who doesn't run...ever...unless something happens to be chasing me, then I'll run. Or if it's a case of finding the bathroom or soiling myself, I'll run then too. But to run for the sake of running, that is something that I just don't do. Until now, apparently.
I've always hated running. There are a few reasons that I don't enjoy it, but mostly I don't like it because I have trouble breathing while doing it. I've suffered from exercise-induced asthma for years, so I've been limited to sports and activities that have rest periods...even short rest periods give my lungs time to relax and regroup. In the past, I would get so out of breath while running that I would start to panic, which in turn just made the breathing more difficult. I've realized now that I need to tailor my pace to my breathing. I run really really really slow. I can probably walk almost as fast as I can run. I don't know if what I do even qualifies as running...it's probably more like slow jogging. But I'm doing it, and so far it's working.
A few weeks ago I was out to dinner with my friends Ellen and Molly, and they convinced me to run a half-marathon in Orlando with them. I had already been planning to attend the race, but only as a spectator with an obnoxious cowbell. I have to admit, they were very convincing in their assurances that I would, in fact, be able to do the race rather than just spectate. I don't know if it was the wine or the fantastic steak or those heavenly garlic mashed potatoes that we happened to be enjoying at the time (we were at Pittsburgh Blue...yum!), but somehow I agreed to run the race. I still haven't signed up, but I will. I'm actually looking foward to it, and have even begun to train. How crazy is that? I ran 2 miles/walked 4.5 miles on Monday. I felt good, I was able to breathe the entire time, and I wasn't even that sore aftewards. This might sound a little overconfident, but I'm really not all that worried about tackling this race. However, most people I know who have run half-marathons have said that I should be.
Here is why I'm not worried about it. I have 3 hours and 30 minutes to go 13.1 miles. I have every intention of using every single minute of that time to finish this thing. I figure that at the very least, I can maintain a 4 mph walk and still finish the race in the allotted time. I don't have any goals regarding finishing within a certain amount of time or running a certain number of miles. My only goal is to finish it. That's it. A few people I know who have run marathons and half-marathons have their reservations about my attitude towards the race, but it is what it is. I'm not an athletically competitive person by nature; if something is too hard for me, I have no problem quitting. I hate competitive sports...even volleyball has lost its appeal for me, which makes me a little sad because I really used to enjoy it. I like to watch other people play, but I don't enjoy playing it myself...partly because my skills aren't what they used to be, and partly because I don't like getting all worked up over a game. And I secretly am afraid of getting creamed in the face by the ball, which would be unpleasant. When it comes to my personal physical fitness, I tend to gravitate towards things that are individualized...where I set the pace, I control the weights, and I decide when enough is enough. I don't push myself beyond what I feel is reasonable, and I don't exercise for the sake of exercising. As long as I can fit in my clothes and look halfway decent in them, I'm happy. It's true that in the last 8 months I've been going to the gym as regularly as I can, and that I get outside several days a week to go for walks. I've even made peace with sweating, which was a huge obstacle for me. I know, it sounds silly, but I've never been a sweaty person, so initially it felt really gross. I've come a long way in just under a year, and I'm happy to say that I'm proud of myself.
So now that I've got running on the brain, I've got all kinds of crazy goals for myself for 2013. The first is the Disney Princess Half-Marathon at Disneyworld in Orlando in February. I'm not a crazy Disney princess person, and I haven't seen a Disney princess movie in years, but the atmosphere of the race promises to be a good time, so that's why I'm doing it. Most of the racers dress up in tiaras and tutus, and we'll be running through the Magic Kingdom. I've never been to Disneyworld, so this will be an interesting way to see it. And I'll be running with some pretty fun girls, and I'm sure they'll motivate me to do more than just walk the entire thing. I do intend on running at least half of it. I'm glad to see that it seems like a very non-intimidating race, meaning that people are mostly just there to have fun. Right up my alley. We're planning on making a weekend of it by going to Epcot and visiting some of the giant outlet malls that are spattered throughout the city.
The second is the Lululemon Half-Marathon, taking place in Vancouver next August, and Simon might run this one with me. Ellen and her boyfriend Fred might be joining us as well. This is a marathon put on by the yoga/run clothing line, Lululemon. I'm obsessed with their clothes, I'll admit it. I love the fit, the function, and the quality. I'm slowly replacing most of my wardrobe with Lululemon pieces...as slowly as possible or else I'll go broke! On any given day I pretty much look like I'm either coming or going from yoga...but I don't do yoga...hahaha! But clothing aside, Lululemon seems like a pretty neat company. They don't just seem to be in the market for making money (although that's a huge part of their business model) but they also encourage people to be healthy. They even go so far as to offer free yoga classes and run clubs. I followed a few blogs regarding their half-marathon from this year, and it looked like an absolute blast. They had everything from drag queens to people dressed up in Barney and Teletubbie costumes running the race. The Lululemon Half-Marathon is not a qualifying half-marathon...there are no prizes for anyone finishing fastest in their age/gender range. Everyone gets the same medal, and everyone is encouraged to have fun. And the race is run through Vancouver, a city I had the pleasure of visiting in June, and I absolutely loved it and am definitely looking forward to this opportunity to go back. Not that I need an excuse to go back, but this helps motivate me.
The third race will hopefully be the Run For Your Lives Zombie 5k, which looks awesome. It's a lot like the Warrior Dash/Mud Runs that all the kids are doing these days, only you're chased by people dressed up as zombies as you're trying to manage the obstacles. You also wear a little flag football belt while you're running, and the "zombies" try to grab the flags off as you run past them. How many flags you have left at the end determines whether you finish the race as a person or a zombie. I'm by no means a Zombie Apocolypse person, but I think that the idea of running an obstacle course while people are chasing you sounds like a lot of fun. And somewhat weird. They have the zombie races all over the country, so I guess I'll have to see where I'm at when they're available. I don't know that I want to fly anywhere for this one. My marathon-running dentist gave me a funny look the other day when I mentioned it to him (I was cavity free, by the way...yay!).
And if I haven't had enough running after doing those three, I may just jet on over to California and do the other Disney Princess Half-Marathon at Disneyland. We'll see about that one though. That's a lot of traveling in one year, and a lot of running, to boot. I'm told that if you do both Princess marathons in one year, you get a t-shirt. I'm all about free stuff, but how far am I willing to run to get it? Not that it's technically free, once you factor in entry fees, hotels, flights, etc.
So yeah. Those are my up-and-coming running endeavors. We'll see how they all pan out. I'm hoping for the best, but am harboring zero expectations. Wish me luck! And if any of these runs sound fun or interesting to you, feel free to join! I need all the motivation I can get! ;)
