A funny thing happened at the start of the New Year ...

I ran.

Me. The one who always say, "I wouldn't run if someone was chasing me." Yeah. I ran. Willingly. And no one was chasing me. I don't know what came over me. But, me running isn't the most shocking part.

I actually enjoyed it.

And then did it again today. And it felt good.

Unbelievable, I know. Right?!

Let me explain myself ...

In an effort to keep up with my "continue to get fit" resolution, I took The Beast for a walk yesterday. I did the regular loop (which is about 4 miles) because it was so gloriously pretty out. About a mile into the walk, I said to myself, "I'm going to jog to that intersection." I don't know how far the intersection was, but I picked up my pace, shortened B's leash, and did it. A little while later, I did it again. And then ... again. And then, when I was near home, I did it a fourth time. And the last time was the longest and hardest that I ran. I was pretty impressed. And then I was convinced that I would be paralyzed this morning when I woke up.

But I wasn't.

So, today, I did it again.

I went to the gym, hopped on the treadmill, and started my exercise. I didn't run the entire time, but I did set mini challenges for myself. I would pick a song with a good beat and make myself run until the end of of it. I ran through a few different U2 songs, some David Grey, and part of an LMFAO song (don't judge me on my musical choices). From what I was actually keeping track of, I ran a 4:10 segment, a 5:00 segment, and a 4:10 segment. I didn't keep track of the other segments. But I've never run for 5 minutes at one time in my entire life. My ENTIRE life. And it felt good. And I was proud of myself. And I'm going to do it again! Not tomorrow because that's kickboxing, but definitely on Wednesday.

I've realized a few things about why I've always hated running. First, I wasn't running in my natural stride. I was taking steps that were far too short for my natural gait which made my shins hurt terribly. Second, I'm currently in the best shape I've been in in probably ever. So I can actually breathe when I'm running. Third, I was being too critical of running in general. It's actually not that bad.

So, now Q's Momma and I are going to start working towards a 5k in the fall. I know that's only just over 3 miles, but I would be amazingly proud of myself if I could get to that point. And I'd start to get a runner's body which is highly desirable. :)