from out of breath to crossing the finish line
reflecting on my fitness journey + learning to run
I think most everyone is aware on some level that working out in pretty much any form is great for you.
For me, this knowledge, coupled with the little glimpse my parents let me see of my family health history (heart disease, disabetes, cancer, oh my), has made it so I’ve always been aware on some level of my lifestyle tendencies and cognizant of how they’ve changed throughout the years.
Growing up, I was a very active child. I was usually galloping around outside in my bare feet, riding my bike with a dorky little helmet*, or taking any number of dance classes (I was a ballet dancer afterall). But somewhere between developing self-awareness of myself and discovering the Internet, I quickly became sedentary. And while I know now from my reflections that there simply will just be times in life that more and less active, it took me a long time to realize that.
*Helmets are important! You may feel silly, but wearing one can help you avoid brain damage. So please, WEAR A HELMET. <3
it started with the “hot girl walk”
2020 was a different time for sure. And while I didn’t hop on this trend when it was originally popularized, I did start to go on hot girls walks after my partner and I moved to St. Louis in 2021.
This time of my life was marked by long hours just sitting in place - my life basically rotated between study and work, both activities didn’t lend itself to much physical movement. So thus I began incorporating walks into my daily routine. I would walk during my lunch break, when my 5 minute Pomodoro timer went off, or it was time to cycle the laundry. This was the time in my life when any little movement counted and felt sacred to me.
Eventually, I wanted to incorporate more activity into my daily routine. Walking felt great, but this little voice in the back of my head whispered I could do more…
And I mean, I’d always wanted to be a runner…
getting started with running
I’ve always admired people who could run. To be able to run down the street and NOT be out of breath? It boggled my mind and I wanted to emulate that desperatley.
However, as I quickly discovered during my early adulthood efforts, running is not easy. My first efforts were met with self-consciousness, a lack of motivation, or a magical combination of both. My lack of knowledge and motivation worked against me for a while. One of the main catalysts that got me to begin focusing on running was when I was climbing up flights of stairs and my friends noticed how out of breath I was. While their commentary was laced with concern, and in no way judgemental or critical, them noticing made me notice. And it got me thinking: what if I could do something to change this?
This formative moment and my partner’s agreement to split a Planet Fitness membership with me provided the motivation and the means. Now I just needed the mindset.
I’m a girly who struggles with social anxiety. And running (particularly at the gym) would be the beginning of my facing one of my greatest social anxiety fears. One of the best mindset shifts I’ve had when it comes to combatting these fears is going from “I can’t because it’s uncomfortable” to “what would happen if I tried?”
I’ve seen this shift impact my life in many ways, but in particular my mental and physical health have seen marked improvement because of this.
On the flip side of this, I was aware that I felt self-conscious running at the gym. So finding an accountability partner to go with who would cheer me on without judgement really helped me keep up with this habit and pursue a goal: running a 5k.
sign-up, training, and race day
My friend found out about the Run the Redline 5k about 2-3 months beforehand and signed us up. With the support of Google, I created a training plan and stuck with running at the gym 2-3 times per week. While I experienced some setbacks (I wasn’t the most motivated to run when I was on Spring Break), I felt good about my routine and remained consistent.
Unfortunately, this is the only picture I have from race day. But as you can see, it was a dreary day. It was pretty chilly, it was misting, and it was grey. There was a delay to the start of the race due to a tree falling down onto the course, so they had to redirect where we were to run. But finally, finally it was time to run…
Running this race was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. And I don’t think I could have done it without my friend Mary to support me. She talked strategy, gave me breathless encouragement, and made me laugh many times. Before we knew it, the race was over.
fun stats for future Rose:
overall time: 43:49
average pace: 14:06 minutes per mile
30th place out of 52, 11th place out of 27 for females, and 1st place for my age bracket of females aged 18 - 29!
things that help me run (and do other challenging things too!)
I still consider myself to be a novice runner, but now I love embracing the challenge of it. I love seeing how far I can push myself and I love that even on the days I am mentally exhausted, I look forward to being able to left off steam by running. Here are some things that help me on the good days and bad days.
Having an accountability partner. Someone to run with who will encourage me to keep going and continue to push myself.
Stretching - before and after. I find if I know I’m going to have a longer run, doing some warm-up stretches beforehand helps me feel markedly less tired. And doing stretches after helps to reduce my muscles complaining at me the next day.
Fuel your body. I’m still looking for the best pre-run snacks and figuring out how to time when and how much I eat prior to a run. I know that my body needs to be fueled prior to a run.
Stop thinking. Stop thinking before the run - just put on the shoes and leave the house, otherwise you’ll talk yourself out of it. And stop thinking during the run - blast the music, think about what you want to make for dinner, or mentally plan something fun in your head. Just try not to think.
what’s something difficult that you accomplished lately?
Let me know in the comments below. <3
Until next time,
