Running....TRULY an addiction!

Really enjoying this post. I can barely run a full mile right now but looking forward to getting better. It's very inspiring to see posts such as "I could barely walk fast and now I'm logging double(or triple)-digit miles a week".

Crazy cool. You guys rock. :flowerforyou:

I started running (for-real-running, I have been working up to this after trying about 6 months ago and injuring myself badly due to weak quads, so I started doing some leg reps and a lot of biking) about three weeks ago and managed to barely get through a full five minutes of straight running at a time (and that was about a half mile). In total I ran a mile and a half that day because I split up intervals- five minutes of walking as fast as possible and five minutes of jogging.

Two days ago I ran a 5K in 35 minutes. You'll be awesome too, I just know it!

What a great thread! I tried running in my 20s. I bought cute clothes, shoes, the whole works. I would run 3 miles and say a lot of bad words and couldn't wait for it to be over (this is for you, Life Is Good). But then fast forward 3 decades and I was at a boot camp and they said we were going to run. I was like, "I don't run. Unless I am on fire. I will run then. Toward water." Boot Camp instructor (she probably worked nights at a women's prison as a guard) said oh yes we do run here. Ah, okay. I will run but I will not like it (I think this. I did not say it. I am stubborn, but not a complete idiot).

Somehow, along the way, I started to like it. I didn't tell anybody. Just in case it didn't stick. I'd run to the Y for boot camp and run home. Then it wasn't far enough (only 3 miles round trip give or take) so after boot camp ended (I'd learned enough from it to move on alone) I started to really, well, run. My husband was wondering if I had been replaced by an alien for a while but he's pretty sure it's me now.

I didn't know how fast or how far I was going for a long time. Then he bought me a Garmin and entered me in a 5K (December 2009). I was terrified. What if I got lost or didn't know where to go? (no, you do not get lost. trust me) I finished in under 30 (which believe me that's the only thing under 30 about me).

Fast forward to this weekend and I just finished my first half marathon. In under two hours. I don't think I want to do a full, but I will do more halfs -- want to go to Disney and there's a fun one in Tampa in February I'm trying to coax my husband into going to. I think 10K is going to end up my favorite distance, but we'll see. I've only run one race at 10K so far. Next month is my favorite 5K and I'm hoping to have it be the one I MIGHT break 25 in. (won't happen, but you always have to have a goal, eh?)

Or is it more the races that are addicting? I started the c25K program on May 29th of this year. To date, I've run 2 5K races and have now signed up for 2 more...within 7 days of each other! What has happened to me? I've NEVER been a runner in my LIFE and now I can't go more than 2 days without getting the itch!

Don't get me wrong, I love it, but at the same time...what is it? I've never done any other kind of workout that has done this to me before!

I just had to put this out there in the hopes that I'm not the only one! :flowerforyou:

Nope, it's the running. I did lots of races 5k, 10k, 30k, 26.2 miles, 100k, 50 miles all in my over 30 years of running and now I still run even though I don't do races. Funny thing about running, didn't help me lose weight --> http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/740340-i-lost-60-lbs-at-age-51-anyone-can-any-workout

<<<--- Certifiable Addict

I just used to run around the block. Took the plunge and did my first half marathon last year and now I'm getting ready for my 2nd in 3 weeks. When I joined a running club it became even more enjoyable, we have so much fun! and it has helped me to de-stress, burn calories and just feel great. I run a minimum of 3 times per week sometimes 4 when getting ready for a race.

All I can say is I miss it when I miss one of my runs!!

This is such an inspiring thread! I've always said I hated running, but have decided to prove to myself that I can change that! So I'm using c25k right now to train for a 5k, too, and success stories like these make me excited to keep going, even though the transition from hating running to enjoying it seems daunting!

For real, it happens. I have never been able to run longer than a few consecutive seconds in my life without getting a stitch and being so out of breath. But now I am dying to run almost every day. I truly love it and for the first time in my life I'm exercising for the right reasons instead of because I'm obsessed with my weight.

Are you talking about the Gasparilla Half on Feb 23? I'm going to be there! It's going to be an awesome run!

If this question is for me, Rebecca, yes! I loved the information about it. I'm a Florida native and running in February sounds like a grand idea. A friend of mine from high school did the 5k last year and loved it.

A couple years ago, if I was particularly cranky, my husband would ask, "Did you take your antidepressant?"

Now, he asks, "Do you need to go for a run?"

I was able to stop taking the meds, but if I got more than 3 days without running, I'm really irritable.