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Bhumi's avatar

Like others, I have had many starts to running. Most recently, I consider my first run to have occurred about a year ago. About 12 years ago, I broke both my legs amidst half marathon training. I wasn't a runner as a kid: I miserably walk/jogged The Presidential Physical Fitness Test every year in school; later I tested out of PE in high school by joining the musical theater troupe and taking an extra science class. So in college, when I decided to start running on a treadmill because of anxiety around the *~freshman fifteen~*, I really didn't have a plan. But my siblings and I decided we were going to run a half marathon together. I still didn't have a plan. I just ran until I got tired and hoped I was going to make it past the finish line (it was 2010 and I didn't have a watch or find running culture the way I have now!). Then I broke both my legs just 6 weeks before the half marathon we'd signed up for. So, running cemented itself in my body as something I couldn't do and I turned away from running for over a decade.

Fast forward to summer 2023 - I asked a bunch of friends to sign up for a relay triathlon with me, and they begrudgingly agreed. We did the tri in April 2024, and I was the biker. As it turns out, biking is my least favorite of the three sports, so my most recent start to running happened immediately following that tri. I bought some shoes and my first run was a 20-minute walk+run on the peloton app on my phone. This time, I was armed with a watch and a water bottle and a fitness instructor in my ear telling me what to do. Honestly, it helped me be less aimless. A year later, I've done 3 5ks, a half, and a 10k. I'm slow. And my body in my 30s doesn't run or recover like my body in my late teens and early 20s could. I'm signed up for a 5k, a tri, and two half marathons in the Fall, and even if I finish DFL, I'm just trying to move my body and get stronger in these strange times we're living through (at least here in the US). I kinda hope this was my last *~first~* run :)

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phonte's avatar

I have a couple first runs lmfao but they’re a clear progression of my life. I was overweight my entire life. My mom has always been a health nut and pushed me to be healthy and exercise. I just enjoyed eating and snacking significantly more.

My mom used to push me to run since I was fairly active. I did sports but did them chunky. If I slimmed up maybe I could take one of them seriously. So I tried to do cardio. It truly sucked. Running alone in the Florida heat and humidity was the worst thing ever. It sucks as a fit adult so you can only imagine how it felt to an overweight pre-teen. Safe to say it didn’t become a habit.

Next was freshman year of college, my mom told me I gained significant weight and I wasn’t happy with the way I looked. My roommate was a T&F/XC runner for the university. I hit the track one day and was once again miserable for a different reason. The weight made my knees hurt and I could barely run a decent pace without walking. That didn’t last long once again.

Then came Covid, my junior year in college. I had nothing to do but workout so this time it became a habit. I jumped rope to increase cardio fitness and slim down a smidge then started running. It started less as an enjoyable activity and more as a build a habit since you need to do this for yourself. Five years later and I’m cruising 7 min miles for double digit miles, have joined a run club with wonderful people, and have done multiple races. It was a wonderful change of lifestyle for me.

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