Running

~winter

The only athletic pursuit I've ever had any success at is ironically the one I've also had the least success at. When I was seven, I joined my school's cross country team, and in a famous incident, not only managed to finish 120 out of 120, but was so far behind that I went off course and they had to go looking for me.

After that I did some sprinting, and wasn't bad, but wasn't up to the same class as the naturally athletic kids. So I focused on academics and the arts through the tail end of elementary school and then high school, and into university. I started running again at the end of undergrad. I'd put on 30 lbs. My mental image of myself was slender and delicate. The mirror didn't agree.

This has turned into something I've done for twenty years now, since I started running with a friend who similarly wanted to lose a bit of weight. I've done a dozen half marathons, a couple 10ks, and some shorter distances as well. I'm not great, but I show up. That alone puts me ahead of most other people. My best results were 2nd in my age category in a half marathon four or five yeras ago, and first in my category in a 3k last year. Neither time world-beaters, but decent enough: you don't always have to be good, just faster than the other people there that day.

Running's easy. One foot in front of the other. Running's cheap. I go through a pair of shoes every year, and that's about it for my costs. I take my dogs and try to exhaust them - when they're spending the rest of the day snoring on the couch rather than tearing around the house in a burst of energy, I feel a weird sense of accomplishment. And I've just started running again this year. I don't run in the winter - too cold, too dangerous with the ice, etc. But now things are mostly melted, the sidewalks are dry, and I'm out doing 30-45 minutes at a stretch again. Trying to build up my endurance a bit, wear out the dogs, and work up to when I can roll out of bed, knock out 10km, and then come back and make breakfast.