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By Michelle May, M.D.
(Discover your Exercise Personality by taking our quiz - go to
http://www.amihungry.com/pdf/newsletter-02-08.pdf)
My husband Owen recently completed his first half-marathon.
Afterward he was limping a little but smiling from ear to ear.
I, on the other hand, had signed up to walk it and didn't even go.
As a teenager in New Zealand, Owen played rugby and ran about 10 miles a night delivering milk in glass bottles (so that tells you he's in his late 40's). In the last couple of decades, his exercise has consisted of walking the dog and intermittently working out at the YMCA, so I was surprised when he announced that he had signed up with a team to train for the Rock 'N Roll Marathon.
He enjoyed the structure of the training schedule, the camaraderie of running with his friends twice a week, the challenge of training for a long-distance event, and the opportunity to raise money for "Chances for Children."
During his five months of training, he progressed from walking and jogging a mile or two to running all 13.1 miles at a pace of 9+ minutes per mile on race day. I was proud of him--but more importantly, he was proud of himself!
As for me, I've never liked to run and never had the slightest interest in training for an event like that. For the last eight years or so, I've loved yoga and hiking--and I'm actually disappointed if I can't fit one or the other in most days of the week.
Why then, when a friend asked me to walk the half-marathon with her, did I say yes?
Because I knew I could and I thought I should.
It turns out that those reasons weren't good enough because my "exercise personality" is a poor fit for training for a long distance event. My travel schedule can be crazy so I didn't like the pressure of having to train. I hated missing my yoga class when I needed to walk instead. I resented the thought of carving out long periods of time for distance training.
Then, just weeks before the marathon, I was sick and couldn't exercise for nearly two weeks. When I finally recovered, I bought a new pair of shoes and developed a deep blister that wouldn't heal. As the marathon drew near, I found myself dreading getting up early and dealing with the crowds and the traffic on event day.
Hate? Pain? Resentment? Dread? Enough already!!! Clearly this was not my thing. I had nothing to prove and it was ruining the joy I find in moving simply for the sake of moving.
So I backed out. No guilt, no shame, just an important lesson learned about myself.
Owen reached his goal and rediscovered his love of running.
I'm back to my hiking and yoga and realized how much I love the flexibility of exercising on my own terms.
Whatever your personal exercise traits are, get out there and try different things until you find something you enjoy. When you do physical activity you love, you'll never exercise a day in your life.
Eat Mindfully. Live Vibrantly!
Michelle May, M.D.
http://www.AmIHungry.com
(Discover your Exercise Personality by taking our quiz - go to
http://www.amihungry.com/pdf/newsletter-02-08.pdf)
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