Four years ago when I began running, I was definitely running towards something. I had a goal. I wanted to finish one half-marathon. That's it. Sure, I had said (out loud, even) that I wanted to run a full marathon, but even I didn't believe me when I said it. At that time, it just sounded good when others said it so I tried the line out a few times, myself. I honestly wasn't sure if I could run 13.1 miles, but I stayed focused and ran towards that goal.
After finishing my half, I was hooked and almost immediately decided to sign up for the prestigious Chicago Marathon. Just like the typical lead character in a chick flick, when the guy I was dating took a wrong turn in life, I thought I could fix it all...and consequently, I forgot about my plans. I quit running. I wasn't running towards or away from something; I was standing still.
Spolier alert. It didn't work out with that guy. Once on my own, I was mad I gave up my dream. I decided to sign up for another marathon. This time, I started a new trend and theory I've kept up to this day. If I was going to run 26.2 LONG miles, I was also going to get a vacation out of it. (Side note: Just because you are out of town doesn't make the pain of running 26.2 go away!) I had no one to go with me, but I signed up for the Rock n' Roll San Diego Marathon and booked a flight. Though it looked like I might be running towards something, I was definitely running from the pain of the recent past.
Not long into the training, I ended up making a friend, Jackie, who was also running the San Diego Marathon. She and I conversed a lot about our training and races. Jackie was going to run seven Rock n' Roll races that year. She talked to me about "Bling". At the time, I had no idea what she was talking about. Once I learned about the Rock n' Roll race bling, I did something completely irresponsible (at least that's what my dad would say) and spur of the moment. I took my tax return check, signed up for six more races and booked flights to each of the race locations. Now, I had something to look forward to all year! Somewhere during that year, I switched gears and was no longer running from something, but running towards something. I ran that year for the coveted top Bling medal: Rock Legend.
The year 2010 was more a year of running in circles. Injuries prevailed and I didn't know what I running towards or away from. I'm still not sure I know the answer to that one. This year, I am hopeful that I can stay focused on running towards my goal. I want to run better than I did in San Diego. As much as I want to stay focused on that goal, stressful events have been creeping into my life and I definitely think I've had some days of training this year that can be marketed as running away.
Running towards something or away from something? My conclusion is it doesn't matter as long as you are putting one foot in front of the other.
No comments:
Post a Comment