I hate running. I do it because it is a means to an end. I run because it is the quickest way to get in shape. I run because it is a way to get in a regular work out in the shortest amount of time. But I hate it. I hate the feeling of my knees and hips when running. I hate the dialogue in my head that goes something like this: “When can I stop? The next corner, the next light?” “When is this going to end?” “Does it hurt enough to stop running and just walk?” Basically it just comes down to a string of excuses. You can see, I hate running! So what’s changed?

In the last year or so, I have been trying to reach 10,000 steps a day. I rely on my fitbit, which I’ve had for that year to help measure and record this data. I was finding that between my commute to San Francisco and kids sporting events/practices I was only totaling 5-6,000 steps a day. I started walking around my neighborhood when I got home from work, even if it was dark. I found that I ended up needing to walk for about 45-60 minutes to achieve my 10,000-step goal.  I decided I would rather spend that time with my kids and that I would fit my steps in while waiting for them (from school or practice).

My gradual embracing of running happened quite by accident. I started waking up a bit earlier (6 or 6:30 am) and jogging (I wouldn’t quite characterize it as running, which I’ll get to in a minute). I started running to Starbuck’s, taking routes that ended up being 2-3 miles. I would walk home with my chai tea latte, hop in the shower and then head to work, getting there around the same time as if I had slept in until 7 am.

At first, this routine wasn’t happening every day, but it was happening 3-4 times a week and definitely on both weekend days. Gradually it started happening every day. When I would skip a day, either because I slept in or because I was traveling, I would miss it. I wouldn’t feel as good. I wouldn’t feel as strong. So, I started making a point of getting up and running each morning, even if it was only for 20 minutes. Running everyday makes me feel a lot better and stronger; and as an added bonus, I sleep a lot better.

I’m not a fast runner; I just try to keep moving. In fact, when I started running every day, I told myself, just keep moving, it doesn’t matter how fast or slow I run, but run the entire route. I would gauge a route based upon how strong I felt that morning rather than trying to decide which route beforehand. I also changed the dialogue in my head to something more positive.

In January I started using an app called Map My Run. I wanted to see how far I was going, how fast I was going, and keep track of progress. I had a rough idea of my speed and distance, but I’ve since discovered that my mile pace is between 10-11 minutes. This won’t break any land speed records but I am running the whole time, not walking.

I ran a 10K in May, with my son McKinley. I knew he was faster than me so I had no expectations of seeing him other than pulling away from me in the first half-mile. I ran the race to see if I could do it again but not be in so much pain afterwards like the first time I ran it a couple of years ago. I also ran with the goal of trying to finish in an hour or with a split pace between 10-11 minutes. McKinley finished with a time of 1:00:21 and a split pace of 9:43 (placing 101 overall and 1^st in his age group), and I finished with a time of 1:08:26 with a split pace of 11:01 (placing 115 overall and 17^th in my age group). I was pleased that I finished (and wasn’t last) and still felt great, even if I was a little sore the day of the race.

I was a little disappointed that my 10K split time was over 11 minutes (even though it was only over by 1 second). That got me thinking I could do better. Plus, around the same time, two other things got me thinking about running faster. One of my friends who turned me onto the fitbit said she tries to beat her prior times and plays games like that when she runs to make it more interesting. Another friend just finished a half marathon and his split time was 9:45. I started wondering if I could get my split time down a lot more.

On the 30^th of June, I ran the big hill by my house and kept track of the times for the 4 miles. I usually don’t pay attention to the first mile because I’m a slow starter and because there is a stoplight where I have to wait and that is elapsed time when I am standing still. My times for that entire uphill run were 13, 11:25, 10:13, and 9:37.

I felt great that I could go faster and not feel like I was going to die. In fact, I felt so great that I actually did a Rocky-like fist pump at the top of the hill. The woman who was walking her dog actually said, “Wow, you are so fast” as I passed her going up that hill. All of this led me to believe that I might have just experienced my first runner’s high and I might have just developed a higher affinity for actually getting out there on a daily basis and going for a run. I don’t know if I’ll ever actually like the running part, but I sure feel great after it’s over! Sometimes, I even look forward to it. But don’t tell anyone!