I looked in the mirror before my morning run (denoting there
will be another run later in the day) and thought, I am that crazy runner.
In Jr. High I had a
track coach that talked with a British accent and unknown to me at the time,
was not Paula Radcliff. But she seemed
to me to be a crazy runner, skinny as a stick, shorts with slits up to the hip
and skin so dry and tan you’d think she was a 90 year old farmer. I always looked up to her though because she KNEW
what running was and by every definition was that ‘crazy runner’.
Well, today I realized, I am that person. I say crazy things like “just 10 miles” and “20
mile training run”. My shadow shows me
that despite all the dried mango’s and peanut butter cups I eat (shout out to
Justin’s organic PB cups!) I am that girl that people thinks needs to ‘eat a
cheeseburger’. Trust me, I eat plenty,
just look at my grocery bill if you don’t believe me! I have permanent tan lines from my tank tops
and compression socks, in fact I’m pretty stripped like a candy cane going from
really tan to really white all the way down my body.
I have a washer and dryer top covered with all my technical
gear (sports bra’s, shorts, socks etc...) That all say “line dry”. Since I don’t have a line and live in
humidity grove, all the things must be put somewhere and that somewhere makes
it really hard to put other batches or otherwise wash anything that is not
running related (what are normal clothes anyway?) Oh well.
The one thing I knew would send me down the ‘crazy runner’ road was when
I bought my first Garmin or GPS watch. I’ll
admit sometimes I wear it when I’m not running to make sure people know I’m a
REAL runner. It’s essential to me now
and I’d die without it but yes sometimes I check my watch while running by
traffic just to look cool.
Also on my list of crazy things is the amount of strange
products I have and love like body glide (heaven sent) roller stick, GU energy
bites, hydration packs, running sunglasses, hats, protein powder (in bulk), Epsom
salt (also in bulk) BCAA’s…. and so on. Yeah
I have a lot. I also know a lot too, the
amount of runner knowledge from stretches for a specific muscle group to how
exactly to pace a progression run is all come about from hours of reading runner’s
world and other such online magazines. I’m
a nerd.
Last but not least is the amount of hours and $$ I spend on
this ‘inexpensive hobby’. I currently
just bought 2 pairs of running shoes at the same time because “I’ll just need
another pair in 2 months anyway”. I try
my best to get the best deals from places like amazon or Holabird Sports but
the truth is, running and racing is expensive! Races are sometimes ridiculous
and by mile 20 I’m wishing I spent that 95$ on just about anything other than
the race I’m running. BUT I LOVE
IT! I’m so happy to be that crazy runner just like the Jr. High
track coach I looked up to so many years ago.
It’s hard, like really, really, really hard but it’s so worth it for me
and I can’t wait to see what my crazy running life has in store for me next. Stay tuned for
in 1 month I’ll take on the challenge to officially become an ultra-runner in
my very first 50k.
