I’m not a runner, but today I ran one mile. That’s right – one whole mile! I know, I know – amateur! I sort of got talked into joining the run club at my gym which is crazy because not only am I not a runner, I’ve never had any desire to be a runner. Not even a little. You know those people who decide mid-life that they are going to take up running and then start training and then do something completely insane like run a marathon? Or even worse, start running daily. Like as a way of life? I’m not doing that. Do you know why? Because I hate running. I HATE IT! Every step I take I curse the name of my friend who talked me into this foolishness. (Juliana – you KNOW I’m talking about you!) I try with all my might to think of anything –anything- other than this hell that is called running and the fact that I can’t breathe and that I’m miserable because I feel like my heart and my lungs are going to simultaneously explode. Today as I was running I tried to focus on the beauty of the morning sky as it grew brighter, but that just made me focus on the fact that I forgot to put my contact in before heading outside. (No, that’s not a typo, I’m nearsighted and only wear one contact which makes one eye nearsighted and one eye farsighted and I don’t have to wear reading glasses. Go ahead and call me vain. Of course I’m vain – otherwise I wouldn’t be running!) I tried to think about the high-fat salt laden restaurant meal (and alcohol) I’ll be enjoying with two girlfriends later tonight in an attempt to convince myself that this torture I was putting myself through will all be worth it. I tried counting 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8, 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8, 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 with every step like someone who was meditating might count their breaths. Except that people that meditate are peaceful. And I’m not peaceful. No moment of zen. No runner’s high. Only misery; no peace. Instead all I could think of, the one thought that kept popping into my head was, “Running sucks.” And I hate it. And I really don’t want to do it again. (Even though I probably will.)
~For 30 days I am righting Just One Paragraph.
Charlene Ross 
I felt like that when I first started running also but as I kept it up I found that I began to really enjoy it. Congratulations on running a mile. That is an accomplishment many people can’t claim
Thank you Erin. Everyone who runs tells me how hard it is in the beginning. That’s encouraging. (Doesn’t mean I’ll necessarily keep at it, but it feels good to hear it!) 🙂
We have so many things in common, Charlene- #1 I HATE running; #2 I am vain; and #3 I also wear one contact for the same reason you do! Plus #’s 4 through 1,000, which there is not the space nor the time to list here. 🙂
#67 Drinking too much wine then making inane comments online (oh wait, that’s just ME!)
Monica, you are hilarious! (And yes, we DO have quite a lot in common.) 🙂
Just getting out the door is half the battle..running DOES suck, but doing it with this special group will make it worthwhile…I PROMISE! You will learn a lot about yourself in the process!!
Thank you Lauren. (Hopefully I’ll learn something good like hard things are worth doing instead of learning that I’m an idiot for doing something so hellishly terrible!) 🙂
I run from three things; responsibility, the future, and the law.
You’re funny, Larry. (And a liar too – I know you run from none of those things!) 😉
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