The Ugly Run

I know this will come as a shock to some of you, but I was not a popular kid in elementary school. I was picked on by the “popular” boys and teased mercilessly at recess and PE, all because of the way I ran. I don’t know why, but my run is something to behold, and not in that graceful gazelle way. My knees turn out, my feet kick up too high… it’s pretty awful.

And so I tried really hard not to run in elementary school, which was no easy feat when running laps was the punishment for misbehaving and I had a tendency to talk in class too much. And then I signed up for track in ninth grade. I still to this day do not know what possessed me to do such a thing. Maybe it was all the pretty, popular, older girls at church sporting their lettermen jackets (soooo much cooler than band jackets!). Or maybe Mama wanted me to do something athletic? I really have no clue. But there I was, a scrawny, chicken-legged ninth grader with exercise-induced asthma, dragging myself around the track and through the woods. How could I have know that one of my hips was higher than the other, and that running would cause me great pain and many trips to the chiropractor? Who could have predicted that I would come in last in every. single. race. that I ran, save one, where I came in next-to-last.

My one redeeming quality from that little experiment was that I didn’t stop running. It hurt like heck, but I kept going every single race. Slowly, but still going.

Fast-forward to the end of my freshman year of college when I agreed to go on a date with a boy. This boy was a runner. Suddenly I became the girlfriend of a track star! Running was year-round for Tim; he ran indoor and outdoor track as well as cross-country. So I was surrounded by running and runners. And yet I still felt no pull to actually run. I did try to go for runs with Tim a few times, but we both hated it. God bless him, he was a good sport about it.

And then, two years into our marriage I inexplicably signed up for a marathon. Not a 5k, not a half marathon, a whole stinkin’ 26.2 mile race. Brilliant! I wanted to lose weight and get in shape. What better way than to pick an extremely long race? I’ll save you the sordid details, but you can read all about it here. {As a blogger and sometime speaker, I am thankful for my marathon experience as it has given me tons of material with which to work!}

Since the marathon {in 2002} I have mostly avoided running. I love the elliptical at the gym, and I did start taking spin classes a few years ago. Love the spin class! I have had days where I would just go for a walk/jog to get out of the house and get some fresh air, but never more than a little run here or there. I like the idea of running, but I’m not so big on the actual doing of running.

Until now. Last week I started running for real. My track coach took me to pick out some new running shoes, and I started a 5k 101 program that is helping me ease my body into running. I started this program thanks in part to my friend Meredith.

Today starts week two of eight for me, and I am on the lookout for a 5k to run in the spring. I have a whole post devoted to explaining why I decided to start running now, and I look forward to sharing that with you soon.

And if you happen to be in my neighborhood any time soon, be on the lookout for a lady with an unsightly gait tearing up the sidewalk. Because yes, my run is still pretty ugly, but I don’t care anymore!