Amid my post-marathon haze, I started reflecting on all the benefits of running marathons and the reasons I want to continue doing so. Undoubtedly, there was a time, not so long ago, when I never imagined that I would run a marathon, much less have a whole three-year calendar plan for the races I want to accomplish. If you were to tell last year me that future me ran a marathon, I would’ve probably laughed in your face. But looking back on it now, it just so happens to be one of the best spontaneous decisions of my life.
I think at some point in everyone’s life they should complete one marathon. Call me a psycho for even putting the idea out there, but stepping out of your comfort zone and just running 26.2 miles surrounded by anything but silence, full of cheers and with a niche of people who have such a passion, for one thing, is the best feeling in the whole world.
Hear me out with this, because I am sure about 85% of the people reading this are not super enthusiastic about running… I wasn’t either at first. For me, half the battle still is simply getting my sneakers on and heading out the door. However, I believe that the most scary, uncomfortable, and dreadful things that we decide to do are what make us who we are. No matter what you choose as your reason to say that you say you couldn’t, I promise you that you could. I for one did at least, and I am nothing special. I did not run in high school; I didn’t do cross country or track. I just happened to pursue one of the most impulsive thoughts I’ve had in a long time, “Let’s run a marathon”.
I think most people put this negative association with the word ‘running’ simply because they don’t know how to run. Marathon running is a totally different sport than sprinting short and medium distances. It’s finding a pace that is comfortable to sustain while having a full-blown conversation. However, I’m not gonna sit here and tell you that it is the best thing in the world because more often than not, there are MANY other things that I would rather be doing than taking an hour out of my day to run, especially now when I have no marathons planned until the spring. I’d also be lying if I told you it is pain-free because it’s not. Running 26.2 miles hurts. It hurts during and it hurts for weeks after, but the pain is temporary. I don’t remember the pain of race day or the pain I felt throughout my training; I remember the joy and the tears in my eyes when I found my family screaming the loudest for me at the finish line. I remember the talks I had with my running buddy and the laughs and the stories we shared during our long Friday runs during training. You see, it’s the great things from running that shine through the small percentage of physical and mental pain and that’s what makes me love it.
Running is one of those things that most people take for granted in life. It’s one of the only sports (that I can think of) that doesn’t require you to start at a super young age or need years of practice to master. It’s one of the very few sports that you can do in a non-competitive environment.
As you can tell, I am very passionate about running, but as I mentioned earlier, I wasn’t this way a year ago. I went out of my comfort zone and ran two miles. I kept running two miles until one day, I was confident and ran three miles. It kept going up from there until I impulsively committed to a charity and earned a bib for the Boston Marathon.
I’ve learned that the human body is much more capable of what we think. It’s our mind that holds us back. The times during my peak week of training when I ran 20 miles alone, without my running buddies, where the voices in my head wouldn’t shut up no matter how loud I turned my music, my legs kept going. I didn’t allow my body to stop because it was capable and I survived every run.
So go out for a run. Who knows, maybe that run would spark a new interest for you as it did for me. Now I am here, spreading the word, reminiscing on the runs and the cheers as I crossed the finish line. I think about it every day and can’t wait for what the future holds.
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