joie de vivre-- a cheerful enjoyment of life & an exultation of spirit.

Friday, February 3, 2012

Just Do It.


So I realize that it's been a long, long while since I've given any sort of update on how my half-marathon training is coming along (and by a long while, I should really say it's never happened). So, after a few weeks of hiding in a bit of a runner's slump, but managing to jump back on the horse yesterday to have one of my greatest runs yet, I'm feeling a bit inspired. Bear with me.

Well, I'm alive. Let's go ahead and start with that achievement. Which, minor as it may seem, I must assure you is a huge accomplishment considering how at the start of this journey, my attempt at running a single mile was probably the most pathetic display of human achievement known to mankind. More importantly, however, it's been 2 months and I haven't quit. And that, my friends, is worth a big huzzah.

I started off this whole process not really knowing what to expect. I knew running and I had a relationship a bit like water and vinegar, but I also knew that a part of me believed I could come to like it-- to actually enjoy it. I was motivated by the idea that at the end of all this I could potentially be in great shape, feeling confident, with all those superfluous benefits that us girls tend to get excited about when it comes to fitness. But more than anything, I was determined to prove to myself that I could accomplish this large, daunting challenge that I had boldly charged myself with. And I knew that I didn't want to let myself down.

And so I went forth. Excited (and desperately hoping) to conquer.

Well, it's been a process, I won't deny that. And it's taken time for me to get to the point where-- dramatic pause-- I'm actually enjoying it. Sure there have been days when lacing up my sneakers was the absolute last thing I wanted to do and days when sleeping in that extra hour was too tempting of an offer to refuse. And yes there have been weeks that I haven't been as good as I should about sticking to my calendar or I decided that because I was so far ahead of schedule I had earned the right to take a few days off. But there have also been days when I've arrived home, collapsed on the kitchen floor, exhausted, but so incredibly proud to have gone beyond what I had set out to do. And there have been feelings like that of finishing my first 6-mile run, when I truly believe in my ability to do this.  There have been lows, but there have certainly been highs. And the point here is this: I'm still at it, I'm still in the game. In the past 2 months, I've come to realize a lot about myself-- my abilities, my body, and my mind-- and who knows what life lesson is next around the bend.

So here I am, less than 2 months out from the big day-- March 24th, 2012. (I still can't decide whether it's more terrifying that I'll be running 13.1 miles in 6, short weeks or more alarming that the time it's taken to get me to this point has absolutely disappeared) So far, training has been great & I've gotten to a point where 6 miles feels somewhat comfortable (a fact which still astounds me). But I know these next two months are going to be tough. I've got many long, hard runs ahead of me and it's going to take a lot of patience and determination to get me there. But that's still yet to come, and my focus remains on taking each day as it comes. So for now, I'll just keep going... one foot in front of the other.

Happy Weekend, everyone.

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