My First Race

                If you asked me years ago if I ever thought I would become a runner, I would have laughed at you. I hated running when I was growing up. I dreaded running the mile in school and it was my least favorite part about sports. However, today I would use the word “runner” as a way to describe who I am. I’ve found that just recently that running is what’s saving my life. Now that may seem dramatic, but I think as you get to know more about me you can see why I say that.

                Five years ago today I ran my first 5K. I signed up for it because my sister was running her second half-marathon and my family wanted to support her by participating in the 5K. I practiced running one time for the event, but it gave me no motivation to want to become a runner. I knew nothing about running or racing.

                As the race began, I took off running behind the half-marathons and other serious 5K racers. The first mile and a half I was okay. After that, my breathing became heavy and my feet began to drag. It was my boyfriend at the time who managed to keep me going. Eventually, we neared the finish line and I remember this family who passed us just minutes before, just ahead of us. I couldn’t gather anything to try and pass them, so I followed them in to the finish line, completing my very first race at 37 minutes. It turns out that the route was mismarked and we actually completed a half a mile more than we were supposed to, which made me feel better about my time. Overall, I was just happy to be done.

 

                                            A picture of me after my first 5K.

                The run didn’t inspire me to become a runner. I didn’t do any running after that. In fact, I didn’t run another 5K until last September. But it was the beginning of something that now is a part of me. I hope to share my journey of finding myself as a runner and share what I’ve learned about running. One thing I’ve learned about running is that there is always something new to learn and each run has something you can take away from it. My first run might have felt terrible at the time, but it taught me that I could run several miles without stopping. That was something I never knew I could do until that moment. Now I know it was just the start.