Ruminations on Running

 Fresh on the (very sore and achy) heels of my 5th half-marathon, and coming up on the 2nd anniversary of my inexplicable decision to pick up running, I figured this is as good a time as any to jot down my ramblings about running.

I was one of those people - the never-runners - the one who would look out the window and see people running and wonder why anyone in the world would run and how one found it enjoyable. Despite being more or less "active" my entire life, I had never run. Torture and injury were the only two things that would come to mind when I saw a runner.

Then, mysteriously enough, even though I had absolutely nothing to do with running, a flyer landed in my inbox. 

The most curious part of it was that it said it'd make running enjoyable even for a couch potato. I was pretty sure that no one would be able to make running enjoyable; I laughed thinking this is more of a challenge for them than for me. So I pestered a friend to join me and signed up to run. 

Before I could decide whether or not I enjoyed running, I had come to like the group aspect of it, had dove deep into researching the running jargon  (cadence, stride length, heel strike, etc.), had clocked in my first double-digit run, and there was a "too good to miss" discount to sign up for the San Jose Rock n Roll half marathon. And that's how I ended up at the starting line of my first half marathon amidst a sea of runners.

Here's the thing about running a half-marathon. Whether it's your 1st or nth time, the initial excitement of the race will get you going until at least Mile 6. From Mile 6 to Mile 8, you can just will yourself to run. When you get to Mile 8 and realize that you can't turn back, you start questioning your sanity and wonder why you'd willingly sign up for this torture. Miles 9 to 12 will have your body screaming profanities at you (if it had a voice), you could find yourself questioning every decision you've ever made in your life, and you might even have some choice curse words for yourself. Once you see the marker for Mile 12, you begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel and pump yourself up for the finish. The marker for Mile 13 comes into view, and it feels like a cruel joke that a mere 0.1 miles could be THIS LONG. You think of whipping out a tape measure to ensure that you're not being tricked here. Once you cross that finish line, though, you'd be amazed at yourself. Getting past that line is as much a test of mental fortitude as physical stamina. When you're on that race path, you know there's no quitting or turning back and going to the start point. And when you prove to yourself once that you can do it, you will keep going back for more. You will go through the same torture, you will continue to question your wisdom and wonder why you're paying to put yourself through this (while someone else should be paying you for your efforts), but you'll continue to find exhilaration at the finish. You don't look at how fast you are or anyone else is going, you just have to think of the next step and the next mile, and then the next race. 

In between the exhaustion and exhilaration, there is a multitude of emotions you'll go through. You'll be grateful for the volunteers helping out at the aid stations, you'll be humbled by the 60-80 year olds pushing ahead of you, you'll appreciate the random strangers lined up along the path cheering instead of sleeping in on their weekend, you'll love the kindness of the fellow runners who tell you to take it one step at a time and not give up, you'll look around and take in the views that you'd normally miss if you were just driving by. You'll be warmed by the role reversal of your kids cheering for you after years of you being their cheerleader. You'll start proudly displaying your medals after drooling over the ones your children got through their numerous activities. You'll find yourself chuckling when reading reviews that mention how a shoe comes alive at a certain pace, because you get it. You'll also discover that, contrary to what you thought, running is an expensive sport - the more iconic the race, the more it costs to sign up. 

A wise man said, "If you run long enough, eventually you'll get injured." So, yes, there will be cramps and injuries, followed by recoveries. The journey of running runs parallel (pardon the pun) to your life trajectory - with all the ups and downs and highs and lows. On the race route or on the trail, irrespective of how many miles you put in, at the end of it you'll walk away (sometimes, limp away) with a feeling of accomplishment and a new-found belief in yourself.

If you ask me, I still cannot tell you if running as such is fun, but what makes me show up time after time is that I run with a really fun group of people who have become my friends. As cliche as it sounds, misery does love company and week after week, mile after mile, we commiserate through our aches and pains. Sometimes, we even surprise ourselves by running more than the stipulated distance. We hold each other accountable, and show up through finger-numbing cold days and sweat-drenching hot mornings. We think of ourselves as a cult, one that I used to look at and wonder about the how's and why's.

And so the cycle of Run, Rest, Repeat continues...