Jogging

I don't like to run, or so I thought until last spring. Right around a year ago I started going to Lake Patsy. The nice thing about going there is that the path is marked off in quarter mile increments so I could figure out distances. I started by walking a quarter mile and jogging a quarter mile, and when I say jog I mean pick up my feet differently than when I walk, not faster than when I walk. There were definitely people who could walk faster than I could jog, but I was out there huffing and puffing. It is really is harder to jog than it is to walk even if you go the same speed. I'm not entirely sure why. Anyways, I worked my way up to jogging a mile and then two miles. Let me tell you, for someone who never ran except when chased before, jogging a mile was a milestone (yeah, I just said that). Jogging two miles was even more amazing. Soon, I started to miss the days when I didn't jog. Summer came and I moved to New Orleans for a couple of months. I still worked out and did cardio, but I didn't do much jogging. I went on the treadmill every once in a while, but I kind of fell out of the habit. When I got back to Oxford I virtually stopped. I claimed I could run a mile, but I don't know if I actually could.

Flash forward to March 2008, I rediscovered running. Jogging, whatever. It's something I really enjoy. My biggest mistake comes when I start my jog too quickly. I get tired and want to stop almost immediately. I then remember to slow down and move into my stride. Jogging I've discovered is a competition with myself. I'm sure runners know this, but I never said I was runner. Anyways, I see how far I can push myself. Jog to that next stop sign. Until the end of this song. After I reach my goal, I walk for a song or so and start again to see how far I can go. It really is therapeutic.