Trail Running: not just for athletes
I've joined the ranks of crazy people, those who run because they like it.
Believe me when I tell you I was one of the last picked for teams in gym class.I can't catch a ball or hit a puck or hold a bat. So I never considered myself an athlete, although I've always been one to run around in the woods with my hair full of leaves.
Early this summer I was feeling emotional over a relationship that slammed into the dirt. Bereft, I started hiking the steepest, most miserable mountain trails I could find in the local hiking guides. It took my mind off other things, gave me something to channel my pain into.
The steepest trails also took up the most time. When I began healing, I got involved in life again, and didn't have as much time on my hands. I thought running, maybe on shorter uphill trails, would provide a decent bang for my buck, timewise.
The notion came to a head when a friend asked if I wanted to run a trail with her once a week. I told her I was thinking about running, didn't know anything about it. I warned Melesa I was slow.
She said, "Fine. Let's go." And so it commenced.
I was abysmally slow. And running for fifteen minutes seemed to kill me. I lived for the breaks where Melesa would stop and wait for me. We'd stretch and she'd take off again. I just shut my mouth and struggled up the rocky trail after her.
We went once a week. At first it seemed like some form of crazy punishment. My stamina from rock climbing, from hiking, from boating - none of it seemed to transfer to this new medium of running.
And then it clicked. The fourth week in, instead of jogging our usual rolling trail, we ran a six-mile uphill loop across the Dry Lake Hills. Since it was long, and definately steep, I gave myself permission to go slow.
And had a great time.
Relived of the pressure to run fast, I began to enjoy myself. I noticed the sky, the mountains, the trees and my own thoughts. My body adapted to the new activity. That's all it took.
Now I can't get enough of it. I love the bizarre looks people give me when I run up steep, rocky, miles-long terrain. I love topping out and heading downhill. It's like being a child again: I put my hands in the air and sometimes even say "WEEEEEE!" Nobody cares; no one else is there.
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