Did you know that today is National Running Day? Neither did I, until the Twitter world let me know.
I struggle with the term “runner.” I don't feel like a runner. My “run” is about as slow as some peoples walks, yet it's more vigorous for me to “run” than to walk. Dare I say I “jog?” (I know a lot of people hate that word) Today, however, I thought I would run for National Running Day. I didn't have time to commit to 90 minutes of Bikram yoga tonight as planned, so as soon as I got home from work, I threw on some workout clothes and my iPod and headed towards my neighborhood park.
My Runkeeper says “Walking” but I in fact, was running- I just didn't set it properly.
This is my fastest “run” so far! By a good bit! When I did my first 5K last year, my average was 20 minutes/mile. My half-marathon pace hovered around 19 minutes. Even though this was just over 2 miles, in the 90 degree sun, hitting a just-over 16 minute per mile average made me feel great. My motto behind this blog is “Run your own race” and it's all because you only have to go at your own pace. Screw everyone else. For me, it was a mental and physical victory. I was a fist-pumping, sweaty mess. My husband looked at me like I was nuts (and then got me some water).
So tonight, I'm declaring I'm a runner. A 343 pound runner. Here's some video proof, which was taken during FitBloggin':