I’ve taken up running, which is a surprise. But that might also be the point. Avid readers of this fine internet website will know, I’m a hiker, biker, backpacker, paddler (have we talked about that yet?) but my time outside is usually spent with at least one foot on the ground at all times. I guess somewhere along the way, I wanted to see if I could run. Then I did it again, and again, and ended up buying a Garmin because Gaia really sucks for tracking fitness activities. The Garmin egged me on. “Yea I bet you can run for an hour, not like it has to be fast or anything” and so I did.
There were two things I noticed after running for a month, specifically these two things I had always told myself which stopped being true:
- I don’t like running. I hate running!
- I’m not “built” for running.
There was a beautiful day sometime in early-mid fall, I was running at Chatfield (where else) and the nearby traffic was light, the sun was out, the air mild or “invisible” as Justy calls it. I was a couple miles in, the music was good, and I was having fun. I’d started looking forward to hitting the trail. That was new.
I’m not a small person, nor am I particularly lean. Thanks to spending my youth on two wheels, my legs are incredibly strong and probably overbuilt, if that’s even a thing. I’ve always had a great appreciation for my legs and the places we’ve gone. There’s nothing about me or my legs that isn’t conducive for running - unless we’re talking about speed. My pace is maybe 12:30 when I’m really moving, but usually closer to 13-14:00 which feels nice and suitable.
It’s maybe a growth mindset thing, and I’m glad to apply that to something other than work.