Arms swinging, legs tight, nipples bleeding. I see a man a few yards away begin to stumble, his legs wobbly and unstable like a newborn calf. He spills onto the black asphalt. It feels like a dream. This is surreal. Why am I doing this?

RACES

I started running years ago with a friend (check out my running origin story!). I started running for fun, for mental clarity, for physical fitness. Soon after I began my running hobby I signed up for 5Ks (3.1 miles) then 10Ks (6.2 miles) quickly became my favorite distance, then half-marathons (13.1 miles) were my new favorite! Before I knew it I ran 3 full marathons (26.2 miles) in a year and a half! It was a wild time. I felt a huge sense of accomplishment after completing a race. They are proud moments.

I highly recommend using races as the impetus to your new life as a runner. Sign up for a 5K months in advance, tell your friends, post it on social media. All of these external motivators can provide you with the fuel you need to stick to your new running plan. Don’t have a running plan for your race? Find one online! Runner’s World has great ones that I’ve used in the past. Find a running plan that fits your goals and current activity level. Know that it is overall a time commitment to train. Carve out this time from you schedule to achieve something for yourself.

RUNNING OUT OF TIME

If you simply want to start running and don’t want to sign up for a race quite yet I recommend focusing on only one metric. Time. Start using an app on your phone like RunKeeper to comfortably walk, jog, or run for a certain amount of time. Don’t worry about your pace, distance, or calories burned. Note how you feel after a run, how you feel the next day, and the duration of your run. Increase the amount of time when your body feels ready. Make your own running schedule and be consistent following through. Some days you will run longer, some days shorter, but try your best to build a habit by showing up for yourself.

I apply this Time Principle when I’m at the gym and all of sudden I get the urge to simply leave 10 minutes after I get there even though I planned to spend an hour lifting. In these moments, I give myself a pass to forget about my lifting schedule and simply do whatever I want for the next 50 minutes. SOMETHING is better than NOTHING. I try my best to stick to my lifting schedule and only implement this free day pass when absolutely necessary but it truly works. Sure, maybe I didn’t complete chest day on its scheduled day but I also didn’t just leave. Focus on building a habit by fulfilling the time commitment. It is not a quick fix. It has to be a part of your life on a daily basis. Being active/running/working out is a huge time commitment. Know that, honor it, and follow through.

WHY AM I DOING THIS

We are what we spend our time doing and who we spend our time with. This blog and complementing instagram account were created because I wanted to intentionally devote some time to something I am passionate about - using my journey with fitness to find wellness. I want to share my experiences to hopefully give you tips and inspiration. Ironically, this particular blog post took me longer to publish, not because I didn’t have time or because I was busy but simply because I was procrastinating. Part of my personality demands that every detail be perfect which can be paralyzing, which blocks me at times from even starting - too busy sharpening pencils to draw. I will do my best to keep this up and I am thankful to those who are reading and following along. I very much get a kick out of seeing that this blog is read all over the country!

To elevate my knowledge base and pass along information, I decided to devote even more time to this journey. I’ve started a certification program to teach indoor cycling classes. I’ve always loved spin/cylcing classes and I will certainly discuss it in a future blog post but for now I am excited to begin that process. It will be thrilling for me to teach my own classes WITH MY MUSIC! I’ve taken indoor cycling classes for years and every time I go to one I say to myself “I can do that” or “I would’ve done it this way”. Well, this is a good time as ever to actually do it! I will provide updates on this journey in the future!

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Why am I doing this? Why am I running 26.2 miles??? Why put myself through this pain? Because all of the training, all the people I’ve met along the way, all of hours I’ve spent towards this goal was for my growth, was to push my limits. It is for me - all of it, time well spent.