Can I call myself a runner?
I recently completed the Big Half Marathon in London. Can I call myself a runner now? Welcome to my quarter-life crisis; I took up running 5 months ago, and now I can’t stop.
Flashback to January when I went back home to Mumbai for my winter break. Who knew that a short two-week trip would be so inspiring and mark the beginning of my running journey? My friend’s dad ran a half marathon. Uncle, who is over 60, casually covered 21 kilometers like it was a walk in the park. But that’s the beauty of running — it’s more of a mental challenge than anything else. Seeing my friend’s dad finish that marathon made me want to give it a try.
I convinced my sister and best friend to sign up for the half marathon with me. Like any other new-bee runner, we started with the Nike Run Club app, which, to be honest, is a great place to start. We then transitioned to the hybrid program created by Natasha Oceane, one of the most inspiring athletes out there. We followed a 12-week program that took us from running 5km to running 18km. Our slow run pace improved from 8 minutes per kilometer to 7 minutes and 12 seconds per kilometer. This might still sound slow to some, but if you’re a runner, you know that even a 2-second improvement can be significant. It took practice, patience, and a great deal of hard work and discipline to get where we are today.
In the midst of our 12 weeks of training, my sister and I returned to Mumbai for a month. However, that didn’t stop us. We continued waking up at 5 a.m. and running, even during heavy rains. In fact, we convinced one of our friends to join us, essentially forming our own little running club. Some days the run felt incredibly easy, while on others, it felt like the most challenging thing to endure. But that feeling every time we reached a new milestone was something else.
To be a good runner, discipline is essential. Consistency will take you a long way. It can be intimidating and somewhat embarrassing when you first start, but for us, completing the marathon within a certain time frame wasn’t the primary goal. Instead, our aim was to complete the marathon with ease and enjoy the entire experience without dying (lol), and we achieved it! September 3rd, 2023, will always remain one of the most memorable days of my life. We not only crossed the finish line without stopping, but we did it in under 2.5 hours, demonstrating the power of consistency.
It’s been 5 months now, and I can’t seem to stop running. It’s not only a fantastic form of exercise but also a tremendous help with my anxiety. Whenever I feel a bit restless, I go on a slow 30 to 40-minute run while listening to my audiobook (currently enjoying ‘Wintering’ by Katherine May), and it truly helps me feel calmer.
We will forever be grateful to my friend’s dad for introducing us to the joy of running and serving as our inspiration. I can confidently say that running will be a part of our lives for a very long time. While we’re not currently training for any marathons, I’m eagerly looking forward to running a full marathon in 2025, hopefully within 3.5 hours. :P