With the new year underway, many of us have the good intensions of a New Year’s resolution. Do you?
Maybe we’ll start eating better, exercise more, clean out all the closets … or maybe we’ll let go of all of that somewhere around Martin Luther King Day.
About two years ago, I started running again as a part of my resolution. I ran for the first time since I was 17 — just a mile and a half to start. It hurt. I was sore. I had trouble walking for a couple days afterward. But I did it again a few days later, and then again and again, until finally, I found myself getting pretty comfortable with a 6-mile run. Six miles was the farthest I had run in my entire life up to that point, so I was feeling good.
Then, I signed up for a half-marathon, which is 13.1 miles, to be held that September. That was pretty much unfathomable for me. The thought of running for nearly three hours by choice seemed a touch crazy. But it was one of those things I wanted to prove to myself I could do. Like writing a book or running for office or traveling to Afghanistan and Africa. How could I not take the challenge?
In the weeks leading up to the race, I trained a lot. I did several short races. I went on long runs — 8 to 10 miles at a time. Many times in the summer that meant I had to get up before dark to get my miles in before it got boiling hot.
The race day finally came. I was scared I wouldn’t be able to finish. Scared I would go so slowly, I’d be removed from the course. Scared of injury and how my body would feel afterward.
I had the luxury of running with my husband, who is a lifelong runner. All went well until about mile 8, when I should have eaten and hydrated but decided not to and “bonked.” I could barely walk, let alone run, and I was embarrassed that my husband had to wait for me and see me so weak.
He stuck with me and I finished in just under 2½ hours. It wasn’t pretty, I did it. I had run a half-marathon.
So here we are, two years later. For Christmas, my husband and I got new running shoes and went through a fantastic running class together that improved my form and thus increased my endurance. I’m ready for the next level: a full marathon. We’ve found one we want to do in July.
Now that I’ve put it in writing, how can I fail at accomplishing this goal?
What are you going to do this year that you feel is impossible? My advice: Start slow, take it one day at a time, give yourself some grace and stick to it. Make it a resolution you’ll actually keep this year!
Marijo Tinlin is a writer and small-business owner in Superior.
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