Friday, September 3, 2010

"Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of  your battle. The world you desired can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours"  - Ayn Rand
 
It's not very often that I write with a specific person in mind.  But today, if not by some request, I am writing a blog of retraction.  Amanda (and you know who you are - and if you don't, it's not Amanda that I run with, but Amanda who needs to run with me) this one's for you.
 
Running sucks.  I maintain my stance on this.  The concept of running in one direction to turn around and run back still baffles me in logic alone.  But here is why, despite my ridiculous dislike for running, I continue to hit the pavement.
 
Running actually works.  There is actual physical success that comes from running.  I will clarify to say that running is not my drug of choice (I think that's why god invented Malibu Rum (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malibu_Rum).  I am never going to be the girl that gets excited at the thought of entering a race, or goes out for 36km runs every second day.  That's just not me and maybe it's not you either, but that's okay - I am here to tell you that we don't need to be that person.  We just need to commit to going out one or two days a week to get our "cardio on".
 
Since starting with JDFT I have run at least 10 times - scary, I know.  The part that is even scarier, is that I have chosen to seek out Amanda (who is in charge of the running class), to ask her to run with me on days that aren't scheduled classes.  In doing these runs, here is what I have accomplished:
 
1.  I can now run 8km.
2.  I can run for 10 minutes at a time (15 on my treadmill)
3.  My cardio is vastly improved.
4.  My ass is starting to look amazing.
5.  My legs are starting to show visible muscle.
 
And those are only five reasons that I can come up with right now that tells me that despite not liking something, running is actually good for me.  (I'm pretty sure someone told me that about Brussels sprouts - once).
 
So, Amanda, in writing my retraction/not retraction.  I still don't like running, I don't get it, and sometimes my motivation to go is in the toilet, but I'm doing it, gratefully, because I sense there is some success behind it.
 
With that in mind, I am going to issue my first ever JDFT Challenge:  "Amanda, I challenge you to run with me three times in the next two months."