From a very young age, I remember hating running. In middle school, my gym teacher would make us run a mile in the middle of the day, then send us off to our next class sweaty and stinky, smh. I was the girl that always finished last.

In summer of 2023, I joined a run club and couldn’t get through one mile without feeling like death. However, less than a year later, April 2024, I completed my first half marathon 🥸

Many people are shocked to learn that in under one year I went from dying at 1 mile to running 13 miles non-stop and am now regularly running for fun.ʷᵒʷ

Here is my attempt at breaking down what enabled such a drastic change in my life.

Why did I join a run club?

It was summer of 2023. My husband and I were going through a couch potato phase. Neither of us took the initiative to get out and move our bodies. We made excuses- too busy with work, too busy with the house, too busy with XYZ. During this time, I was working remotely and felt really lonely. I was used to the office camaraderie and friendships. So, I began attending this Huntsville Young Professionals group in my hometown, to hopefully make new connections that would develop into meaningful friendships.

One guy casually asked if I like running. You already know what I answered, lmao. He told me that if I ever change my mind about it, to join Huntsville Pub runs on Wednesdays at 5:30pm. I figured what the hell, let me take a chance and check it out, what's the worse that can happen? So I dragged myself and my husband to a run. And well… we kept going again and again every Wednesday for several months. We met new friends, brought in old friends…they were beautiful bonding times 🥹

Why did I choose to do a half marathon?

1. Deadlines motivate me.

2. An accomplishment like this genuinely surprised and intimated me. I really liked that for some reason. It was out of my comfort zone, but I told myself that if I can do that, I can do anything (🌽-y)

What lessons did I learn from my running journey?

1. I learned to deal with discomfort. Running fucking sucks (at times). After 5 miles, your legs start feeling sore, your heart rate is up, you're sweaty, you feel tired. But over time, your endurance increases, your pace gets quicker, your legs don't get as sore anymore. You basically raise your discomfort level. Once you are comfortable sitting in discomfort for prolonged periods of time, the inconveniences in your everyday life become much more bearable, silly even.

2. I learned to be more attune with my body. Running requires good posture, engagement of the core, a good breathing technique, relaxed shoulders and neck, etc.

3. I learned more about random topics (through podcasts!). Running allowed me to put on 1hr+ long podcasts such as Huberman Lab, Lex Friedman, Modern Wisdom, Leap Academy, and more. In these podcasts I've found golden nuggets on health, technology, entrepreneurship, taking risks, setting goals, growth mindset. All info that is lodged somewhere in my brain and has been put to use consciously and unconsciously 🤗

Should you take up running?

Maybe. Some people have knee or hip problems that make it really difficult to run for long periods of time. If that’s your case, I would suggest trying out low-impact cardio like swimming or bicycling. BUT if you're good in that area and are curious about it, find a good podcast/music playlist, good company, and some good running shoes and try out just 1 mile. You’ll discover things about yourself you never knew were in you!

That's how it all started for me!

If you have any comments or questions, let’s chat and we can figure it out together!

Running for my life