When did you decide to become a Runner?
thepetiterunner
Posts: 1,238 Member
I was reading a book by Dean Karnazes and ran across this quote:
"Every devout runner has an awakening. We know the place, the time and the reason we accepted running into our life."
This is totally true for me. I decided on August 2, 2010, while I was sitting at my desk at work. I did it to see if I could run a half marathon and two months to the day later, I proved that I could.
When did you decide?
"Every devout runner has an awakening. We know the place, the time and the reason we accepted running into our life."
This is totally true for me. I decided on August 2, 2010, while I was sitting at my desk at work. I did it to see if I could run a half marathon and two months to the day later, I proved that I could.
When did you decide?
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Back in high school I joined cross country as a way to meet people since I didn't play any team sports. Gave it up after running a couple of years and had my high school group of friends. Fast forward to when I hit 29, I decided I better step up my workouts to keep my weight in check. That's when I ran my first road race, and haven't stopped. In fact I expanded into doing triathlons, since I was getting bored just running.0
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I started to think about it when I read "Run Like a Mother". But I didn't have the physical fitness to do it yet then, was going through a lot of depression and fatigue. The following December when I started getting some exercise in on the wii, and started to get some energy back, I really started to work towards it. Actually started running outside in the following May (last year).0
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I've been running since I was 19, but it wasn't until 11 years later that I decided to try a race and I ran my first 10K for my 30th birthday. I don't think I decided "to become a runner" then though. In fact, I seem to recall telling people that if I ever said I'm doing that again to please talk me out of it. The following year I did my next 10K and I think that's when I knew I was a runner. I've been increasing my distance ever since (18 miles is my longest to date) and run way more than I ever have. It's completely in my blood!0
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I started running last Fall for health reasons. However, I truly went into it after watching someone finish an Ironman on TV. I want to be that person, one day. I want to feel that sense of accomplishment.
Nothing will stop me. My 1st 10 K is in May... so excited
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Mine was when I completed my first marathon 5 years ago. I had ran a few 5Ks with my sister (I laugh now at how hard they seemed back then), but running was a chore....something I had to do to get in shape. She talked me into signing up for a marathon. We were so naive! I didn't know the first thing about distance running and didn't have any interest in signing up, but after the hubby made a crack along the lines of "YOU? Run a marathon? ha ha" I signed up out of spite. The training runs were hard and long and I think I hated almost every minute of it. After I crossed the finish line I was filled with a euphoria that has only been surpassed by giving birth to my 3 boys. It made all the early mornings, chaffing, blisters, hours on my feet, nasty gels, and exhaustion worth it. It was in the first few days after my race, when I was taking some time off to recoop, that I noticed I would see another runner outside and I was positively itching to get back out there! I WANTED to run, when did that happen? Now I have several distance races under my belt and I can't imagine a life without running, I'm a different person now.....running has helped define me. 0
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I don't think I ever decided. I just started running one day, and it happened
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I was training for my first half Marathon. It was mid-February (two years ago), cold, rainy...basically no one would ever want to be voluntarily outside right then. But I had a 5 miler to run, in the dark. And I damn well did it.
It was the best run I've been on ever, no contest. I wish I could replicate that night every single time!0 -
Wow, good question. I've never really thought about it. But I'd have to say it was when I was about 12. I've always loved running and ran track and field in Jr. High and HS. But I remember one day during a workout thinking nothing compared with the feeling of running as fast as you can - it made me feel free, strong, and happy. Nowadays, I'm more of a penguin runner (though these 40 yr old legs can still move pretty fast on a speed workout!), and I enjoy plodding along on the trails. A mom of a 3 yr old active little boy, I now enjoy running for the peace and quiet instead of the speed.0
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I don't think I ever decided. I just started running one day, and it happened
Me too. I feel like a gradually became a runner, I'm not sure I remember a distinct moment when I became one!0 -
Mine was at the end of June 2009. I had been on heavy medications for 6 years after a bout of post-partum psychosis and then being diagnosed bipolar. I had begun to feel like crap. Had no energy to even get through the days. Was depressed beyond belief and had gained a ton of weight. I knew I felt awful because of all the ridiculous meds. So, with the help of a great doctor, I got off ALL my meds and he encouraged me to find something that was just for me. It was then that I decided to run. I have never looked back.0
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2009. My bff of 20 years registered me for my first 5k. It was also the day I decided being fat was no longer for me because dang it that run was HARD. It was hard because I was so fat. I restarted C25k for about the 3rd time after that race. I haven't looked back since.
and a shameless plug... if you want to see where my running has gone visit my blog..
http://anotherrunningmom.wordpress.com0 -
shameless plug: you are awesome.2009. My bff of 20 years registered me for my first 5k. It was also the day I decided being fat was no longer for me because dang it that run was HARD. It was hard because I was so fat. I restarted C25k for about the 3rd time after that race. I haven't looked back since.
and a shameless plug... if you want to see where my running has gone visit my blog..
http://anotherrunningmom.wordpress.com0 -
I never really decided, I just was. As a kid as young as I can remember I was always running and trying to get anyone who would to race me.
Ran all the way thru college, but then I did take a lengthy break from it. Started going on runs a littlre more often once I hit 30, and about 3 years or so ago really got back into it.0 -
I started to think about it when I read "Run Like a Mother".
I love that book! It's what got me wanting to try a half marathon last spring and this spring I'm now training for #'s 4 & 5. They also have a facebook page that is worth checking out.
The main thing that got me back to running is 2 years ago I signed up for a 5k program through the YMCA to say yes I can run again (after having 2 kids). And now I love it and love the half marathon distance.0 -
Last year I decided to try the C25K app that I had previously downloaded on my phone...I really didn't have an interest in running (my whole life I loudly professed to anyone that would listen that I HATED running) but I was getting bored of my workouts. Somewhere in that 1st-2nd week I became hooked and I've never looked back. I ran my 4th 5k two days ago (<--- I'm on the right in the pic!) and I think I'm going to start training for a half.0
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I restarted couch to 5k in 2010 with a friend and from there we began running and signing up for a lot of 5k races! It became a lot of fun and we made a pact that we would run a marathon before we turned 40.....well now here we are at 30 and we are on week 8 or marathon training!! First marathon will be happening in April!!!0
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Another one "it just happened". I started running to shed those last few lbs and before I new it I wanted to see if I could run 3 miles straight, then 5, then a half mary, and now a full.
Running has become such a part of me, a part of my identity that I think I'd be lost without it. It's my release, my me time, a place where there is nothing but my thoughts and solutions.
Also LOVED "Run Like A Mother"!0 -
In February 2009 I bought a jogging stroller because I wanted to exercise without "mommy guilt". I did it originally out of necessity that became an obsession. After my second baby I started the couch to 5k program (I had been on major restrictions during my pregnancy, way out of shape), did my first 5k in May 2011 and am now training for a half. I feel so powerful when I run, it's truly a release.0
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I always wanted to be a runner. I'd see people running and they just looked like they were enjoying themselves. When I started to lose weight, I started with a kettlebell. I had a friend who was running at 12k and she told me I had several months to train. Another work relationship, had ran a marathon - and she was a heavier girl. So - I took off one day after doing kettlebell work for over 9 months, to see if I could run - my first run out, I went 3 miles, easy, no walking. I knew if I could do 3 miles, I could do the 12k in 3 more months. So I started training, it was the year I turned 40. I wanted to set a goal for myself to accomplish something at 40 that I'd never dreamed of before. I completed my first marathon 2 weeks after I turned 40.0
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As soon as I saw my engagement pics in '04. I noticed i was looking like "Fat Chandler (friends reference)." Had to do something about it. I thought 15 minutes was an accomplishment then and never would dream of a 5k. I was not really out of shape either, just not a runner.0
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I've been overweight since I was 9, and I've never been interested in exercise. For years I yoyo dieted, then decided that I didn't care about my weight at all! I'd also had random bursts at random fad diets, and occassional spurts at gyms. However, 3 kids, full time shift work, and 1 income soon ate up most of my time and money.
One evening (last january- 1 year ago) me and my hubby had a bit of an argument, and he told me to get some air (but more expletives were used). I was so angry I decided to try and get rid of some of that extra energy by running to the next lamp post. and that's when I became a runner- at least that's when I became determined that I was going to become a runner. My first goal was to run 1km without stopping! And my distance goals have carried on increasing since then.0 -
Truth is I never had that epiphany. It just happened. Sorry if this bursts the concept's bubble. However, I've had plenty of other exercise related epiphanies:
August 2006: I'd been trying on/off for years, and always failed, to get my healthy weight loss act together. This time would be different (as opposed to the countless others). I bought a used treadmill, a copy of "Fitness Walking for Dummies", and I just went for it. Treadmill walked every flipping day, while I reformed my diet. That was almost 6 years, 65 pounds, and endless races ago.
Sometime in late 2006, early 2007: My walks got fast enough that I converted them to running. It was tough at first, but it felt like a natural progression.
September 2007: In an effort to put my new exercising regimen (and weight loss) to the test, I ran/walked my first marathon. Decided I could confidently cross marathons off my bucket list.
October 2007: On a whim, raced my first triathlon. A sprint. I heard you needed to get back in the swing of things after a race to avoid physical and mental collapse, so voila. I biked and swam once or twice before, just to get the hang of things (Crashed the bike, and ended up in the emergency room 8 days out. NUTS! The ER Dr said I probably shouldn't race, which of course meant I HAD to. And thus a baaaaaaaaad habit was born). Raced, got home, and I swear I knew from that day forward I knew I was going to do triathlon till I died.
I still run half marathons or less. LOVE trail races. But, truthfully, my favorite half maries come after swimming and biking for a few hours.0 -
HMMM - I had wanted to run for a number of years, but always seemed to have something happen (foot injury, twisted ankle, illness, etc) that made me quit a training routine after a few weeks or a month in. Last year, joined a weight loss competition at work and started working towards running in March - a coworker and I started a goal of running out first half in early September. Now, when I shared that goal at home, my husband make a comment about how crazy that idea was and that it would never happen... So I had to prove him wrong. Over the spring I walked 2 halves and did run the half the first weekend in September, in spite of a very hot summer and 90 degree temps by the time we finished. my sister, who has run for many years, also ran that race to help encourage us to the end. After that finish, I was hooked!0
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15 years ago I quit smoking and got fat. Got a treadmill, started walking, walking turned into jogging...then my sister signed us up for a 5 k.....and the rest as they say is History.0
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When I quit smoking and had kids. I was an athlete in highschool and wanted to be back to that healthy status again, so I started running.0
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I ran high school track, although not very seriously.
It was not until 5 years ago that I decided to train for a triathlon to get into shape. I enjoyed the running part so much because it was something that I could measure and feel accomplished about. It stuck!0 -
I had moment where I said to myself I could do this. I could be a runner. I was looking for some different cardio things to do other than the dvds I was doing at home. We recently moved near a park. I was like there are some nice trails there I bet I could for a little jog. I amazed myself that I could run a mile without stopping and then I decided I wanted to train for a 5k and the rest is history.0
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The first time was Middle School I beat everyone in PE so I joined Cross Country. I was hooked through high school. After high school I got lazy and then eventually settled down and had 2 kiddos. I have always missed the thrill of a race and have often even dreamed of it although I was not actively running. I have been running off and on the last two years. Now I am only 2 months into running again (nearly every day) and it has really helped me in a positive way in every aspect of my life. I only hope to bring down my time and get fit in the process and not have a break and have to start all over again!0
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