Why, why, why???????????

It's a really good question. I was at a party last summer and had to leave early to get up for a 5k the next morning and one of my friends looked at me and simply said, "why?". "What do you mean?," I asked. And his question was, "Why on earth would you do that?" As I said, it is a really good question and it's one that I ask myself a lot. There are many obvious answers but the real answer is not so obvious. Let's review. . . .

Obvious answer #1: To get skinny. Well, throw this one out right away. I'd love to be skinny but it's not working out so good. There are two parts to getting skinny and excercise is just one of them. The other one does not include alfredo sauce.

Obvious answer #2: It's fun. No, it isn't really that fun. It isn't fun when you are running a 5K and think you must be nearing mile three but then see a sign that says "MILE 1". It's fun at the beginning and fun at the end, but the middle can sometimes really suck.

Obvious answer #3: To be healthy. This is a good one. I do want to be healthy and live a long life. I hope I can run 5K's with my grandkids some day as I saw one grandfather doing with his granddaughter this morning. I have no desire to have a heart attack or take a bunch of blood pressure medication. I like to be able to run up and down the stairs without having to catch my breath.

Obvious answer #4: The gear. I suppose I could walk in this gear or do other excercise in it. But somehow this gear gets me all fired up.

The truth. The truth is hard to explain. As a kid, I was not an athlete. I was a nail polisher, a dancer, a slumber partier, a boy chaser, a sun bather. I played little league but wanted to puke before every game. I still can't catch, or throw for that matter. I cried on mile run day in gym class. I came in last every time, usually walking. I honestly believed, until last year, that I COULD NOT run. I am in awe of myself every time I do. So that is why I run. I run because I CAN!

At the end of every run I think about that girl I used to be and I shake my head and wonder where this woman came from. It's hard to believe, really, that I can do this. It makes me wonder what else I can do and that is super exciting!