What will YOU settle for?

Not long ago, I had to clear the cobwebs off my blog and share an updated posting to Obsessed Runner.  In it, I humbly acknowledged my succumbing to human "sloughness" when it came to my training, over about an 8 month period of time.  Not surprisingly, I was also very unhappy that I had allowed a softening of the body, a loss of lean muscle mass, definition and muscle tone, not to mention stamina and general well being in the absence of my formerly regularly disciplined habit of running.

Now, three months later, I can proudly say.....I am back...back, better, stronger and faster... and with a new attitude towards this wonderful "pastime", obsession, lifestyle I have come to embrace in an even more appreciative light.

The first awakening to the new obsessed runner in me was the work it took to rebuild my endurance, even on what I used to call my "substantial" regular 3- 3.5 mile run!  In seeing and not being willing to settle for being out of shape, I focused hard and trained harder in preparation for my second attempt at the USA 15K Championship known as the Gate River Run.! My first attempt was a year ago, before my "lapse".  This is a very challenging race, as the 9.3 mile run crosses 2 bridges, one of which is very difficult and comes at the last mile of the race.  My first time in 2011...1:50.  THIS year, I was pleasantly surprised that, despite my "sobattical" from running, with my determination and training, I finished in a very respectable 1:38 ! The best part? I did the run non-stop, making it more than just a PR...but also the longest distance I have ever run without a recovery break.  I decided that day that if I could do that, I needed to set my discipline limits higher and demand more from myself on a regular basis. It's not about making excuses, or the ailments, or the things we let stand in our way...it's about what we are willing to settle for in and FOR ourselves.
Two quotes I have recently read:  "I have chosen this sport, this lifestyle, and this outlet because I believe in the life lessons and principles it teaches through natural consequences. I believe in the law of the harvest – in running, as in life, you reap what you sow. Similarly, I choose to run because I believe in testing oneself and that in so doing a better self will emerge." (Jacob Puzey, Flotrail Magazine)


Your Body On a 30 Minute Run" (Women's Health Magazine, April 2012
"In the first few minutes:  

• muscles start burning ATP then ADP energy, breakdown glycogen & pull glucose from your blood and your body releases lactic acid
• in the next few, your heart rate increases and blood flows to the muscles and intake more O2.
• you begin to "torch" calories at a rate of 100 per mile!
• within 10 minutes you begin burning fat
• after 30 minutes, your brain has triggered the hormone dopamine and you feel energized!

Running conditions much more than your legs & muscles...it rejuvenates your entire body, refreshes cells, improves physical youth and vitality, and improves mental focus and fitness as well.


Ok..go ahead and say it, "But what about your knees?  What about
arthritis? Running is BAD!!"   Obesity is BAD. It can kill you...it has a direct causal relationship with heart disease, diabetes, and cancer...and it will kill you fast and young! If you run in the proper shoes for your stride, focus on running posture and regulate cadence and form, chances are you will have many decades of amazing health and vitality (and running) long before the time that you MIGHT have some discomfort in your knees and joints.....neither of which will kill you!


I wouldn't want anyone to take up running for any reason other than that they fell in love with it and wanted a better life...in every way...but if you do take it up for your health's sake...good for you!