On Saturday of last week, I ran 9.5 miles. It felt great. Seven months ago, I would have told you that was insane, and that we domesticated horses and invented cars for a reason. I ran it nonstop at just under a 10-minute mile pace. For those of you who have been running for a long time, you’ll likely say that wasn’t very fast at all, and that a good runner would cover that distance nearly twice as fast. And you’re right. I’m not going to win any marathons at that pace, and I’m darn sure not going to win a 5K. It’s not even my best pace, though for that distance, I feel pretty good about it, which is the whole point of this blog: learning to feel good about yourself. After doing some more reading and research, I learned that, at that distance, it’s a good idea to bring some food, like an energy bar and water and / or Gatorade to rehydrate and replenish electrolytes. After reading this, I felt so good and so confident that I could do better that the next day, I got up, strapped on my Camel Pak (loaded with Gatorade), grabbed a granola bar, and set out on what I tended to be an even longer and faster run. After the first mile, I was feeling okay and decided it would be a good idea to work on my speed a little bit, so I started sprinting at quarter mile intervals. After mile 2, I was feeling tired. So I decided to take a nice, easy jog for a little bit of the way. After mile 3, things started to chafe. Men, if you have been running for any length of time at any significant distance, you know what I’m talking about and you know how bad it hurts. 
Ladies, I’ll just say that I’m not talking about what you think I’m talking about, but I’m still too polite to come right out with it. Needless to say, I was in pain. Going shirtless wasn’t an option because I had my Camel Pak and because I was in a residential neighborhood and, frankly, no one’s done anything bad enough to deserve having to see me running through their neighborhood without a shirt. So I started to walk. I walked for another 3 miles. And that was all I had. My legs were tired, my chest was tired, I was hot, and other stuff hurt. Bad. Now you are no doubt asking yourself “why is this idiot telling me all of this?” Well I’ll tell you why: Because I want you to realize that sometimes you gotta walk before you can run. Or in this case, walk after you run. In any case, what I’m saying is that it’s okay to walk. There. Now you can give yourself permission. I didn’t use to think that way. When I first started, and was actually able to run, I felt like walking would be a step backward, would be me giving up. But it’s not. Sometimes, some days, your body is just not going to have anything to give. And if you’re working hard most days, that’s to be expected. Listen to it. There is a difference between not wanting to and not being able to. If you are otherwise able to get up and run, but just don’t want to, than you’re giving up. If your body just doesn’t have anything left to go out and pound the pavement, than walking will do the trick just fine. It will still burn calories, keep you moving, keep your legs warm and loose for another run tomorrow. It will still get you your miles for the week. And it will, I the long run, help build your endurance. There is no shame in walking. There is only shame, is you are inclined to feel it, in not trying, in giving up. And walking is not giving up. I’ve said before, and I’ll keep saying it. You will have good runs, you will have great runs, and you will have downright ugly, nasty runs. The nasty runs make the good ones better and the great ones greater. Any runner who tells you they always feel great after every run is lying, unless what they mean to say is that they always feel better that they decided to run as opposed to not running. That’s the difference. Some days, I feel terrible after I run. This afternoon, for example, on my lunch break, I only had time for two miles, so I got my two miles in. Now, I never even start to feel good on a run until around mile 3, so there was no way it was going to be a good run. But I’m still glad I ran. So keep moving, even if you’ve got to walk a little bit, or even a lot. You’ll better and better about yourself in the long run.
Ladies, I’ll just say that I’m not talking about what you think I’m talking about, but I’m still too polite to come right out with it. Needless to say, I was in pain. Going shirtless wasn’t an option because I had my Camel Pak and because I was in a residential neighborhood and, frankly, no one’s done anything bad enough to deserve having to see me running through their neighborhood without a shirt. So I started to walk. I walked for another 3 miles. And that was all I had. My legs were tired, my chest was tired, I was hot, and other stuff hurt. Bad. Now you are no doubt asking yourself “why is this idiot telling me all of this?” Well I’ll tell you why: Because I want you to realize that sometimes you gotta walk before you can run. Or in this case, walk after you run. In any case, what I’m saying is that it’s okay to walk. There. Now you can give yourself permission. I didn’t use to think that way. When I first started, and was actually able to run, I felt like walking would be a step backward, would be me giving up. But it’s not. Sometimes, some days, your body is just not going to have anything to give. And if you’re working hard most days, that’s to be expected. Listen to it. There is a difference between not wanting to and not being able to. If you are otherwise able to get up and run, but just don’t want to, than you’re giving up. If your body just doesn’t have anything left to go out and pound the pavement, than walking will do the trick just fine. It will still burn calories, keep you moving, keep your legs warm and loose for another run tomorrow. It will still get you your miles for the week. And it will, I the long run, help build your endurance. There is no shame in walking. There is only shame, is you are inclined to feel it, in not trying, in giving up. And walking is not giving up. I’ve said before, and I’ll keep saying it. You will have good runs, you will have great runs, and you will have downright ugly, nasty runs. The nasty runs make the good ones better and the great ones greater. Any runner who tells you they always feel great after every run is lying, unless what they mean to say is that they always feel better that they decided to run as opposed to not running. That’s the difference. Some days, I feel terrible after I run. This afternoon, for example, on my lunch break, I only had time for two miles, so I got my two miles in. Now, I never even start to feel good on a run until around mile 3, so there was no way it was going to be a good run. But I’m still glad I ran. So keep moving, even if you’ve got to walk a little bit, or even a lot. You’ll better and better about yourself in the long run. 
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