Start slow and taper

I do love running. It wasn't always that way; in fact, I used to hate it. My mom was a marathoner and she made my brother and me run when we were kids and we were loathe to do it, choosing instead to hide by the docks and eat dry Ramen noodles.

In October of 2003, I started running because I was in a bad mood. Angry at my ex-boyfriend, I decided to blow off some steam and nearly passed out after less than a mile. I went straight home and signed up for a half marathon. The next day, when I realized what I had done, I called my best friend Michael who I remembered had mentioned running before. He enthusiastically signed up for the half as well, and thus, a runner (and her brave friend-turned-coach) was born. I didn't like running for a long time, although for some reason (likely how much I loved the trail where I trained in Austin), I kept up with it. I finished the half (February 2004) in 2 hours and 45 minutes. I decided to sign up for a full. I finished that the following year in 4 hours and 52 minutes. As soon as I crossed that finish line in February, 2005, I couldn't wait to train for the next one. And then I discovered that I actually loved running. And I challenged some other friends to join me for another race in October of 2005. Five of us ran. I finished in 4 hours, 25 minutes.

I'm still going. This Sunday I will run my sixth marathon with my dear friend April (who braved less than optimal conditions with me at the Tulsa Marathon last year), and I am so excited. I've infected new friends with the running bug and reinvigorated those who haven't run in a long time. I strike up conversations with strangers and I could talk about it for hours. I am eternally devoted to my running club and I've not found the peace and comfort that I get running on the Town Lake Trail in Austin. More important than running marathons is just running, pure and simple. Sometimes I do it to blow off steam, sometimes I do it to get invigorated, sometimes to think and sometimes to turn my mind off altogether. Sometimes it's to catch up with old and new friends. Sometimes it's because I feel weary and out of shape. Mostly, it's because it is remarkably freeing and validating because I can do it. And I hope that I can do it until I die. Maybe I won't always be able to complete the 26.2 milers, but getting in that run, even if it's just a 3 miler, is vital to my health and sanity.

Do you want to run? Give it a whirl. You can find a training guide right for you right over here. I encourage you to try it out for more than a few times; as I mentioned, for some people it takes a while to get into it, but I find it's the cheapest therapy available.

"It's a treat, being a long-distance runner, out in the world by yourself with not a soul to make you bad-tempered or to tell you what to do."

-Alan Sillitoe