Part of me laughed as I typed that title. Me? A runner?
But I am.
I am slow, and I am new to the running journey but I am a runner.
And I love running!
I enjoy the peace - it feels like a short hibernation for my soul. I relax with the pacing of breath and footfall. I look forward to reminding myself when I feel weak that "my knees are strong, my hips are strong, my ankles are strong" and then feeling the surge of energy as they indeed prove to me that they are.
I'm thankful I get to run.
And I've been learning a few things that carry over into other parts of life:
- Slow still counts.
- Keep inching towards getting better, faster, stronger. Aim for a 4% increase each time. (Atomic Habits by James Clear taught me that...good advice. It's just enough to keep you engaged but also successful.)
- Stretching and warming up and cooling down = important. Buffer time matters.
- Sometimes a run is better than a nap.
My hope this year is twofold: to run a 10k and finish it, and to be able to pop out the door and run four miles as if it were one mile. (One mile feels too short, two miles is starting to feel that way. Hooray!)
Any tips for me as I run? I'm especially thinking about long term running health. I'd love to hear from you!