A Sporty Saturday

I am a lot of things. I can do a lot of things. I am not a runner. I cannot run. This is not a mental thing. I just loathe the thought of running. I hate the act of running. Every time I attempt to run, I can go approximately 2.5 minutes before the cramps set in. I accredit the cramps to that joyous emergency appendectomy I had back in the 4th grade and the idiotic nurse who left a gauze in for 24 hrs which ended up growing to the inside of my stomach resulting in the lovely doctor telling me that at the ripe age of 9 I was going to die. To give me an even bigger complex, my surgeries had created such a mess that they were unable to sew my tummy up causing it to naturally heal. I was promised a very thin line at the age of 16 but here I am 12 years past age 16 with a non-thin line and an extremely noticeable scar. A scar that I blame for my inability to run due to its position on my side and the pinching it creates with each movement. The scar does not contribute positively to the constant organ dance party that occurs during the exercise of running. An organ dance party that beats to its own drum; something equated to oh say house music and a full blown rave. Hence why running does go so pleasantly for me.

I can still remember the first time Ryan asked me to go running with him. I still smoked cigarettes then and drank adult beverages frequently. Also known as my "PB stage" when I lived in Pacific Beach and lacked any real responsibility. I wasn't not in shape. I played tennis 5+ days a week and worked out via elliptical or walking, and we had been on a few minor hikes around Santa Monica. But the thought of running made me 1. want to vomit because like I mentioned above I despise it and 2. running somehow reminded me of Ryan's past, a past that I preferred not to think about or be related to. In relationships, I have always had a protective nature of wanting to create my own memories, traditions, rituals, etc. Anyhow, trying to continue to impress him during my "interview" period, I hesitantly agreed. Horrible. My organ dance party started about 10 seconds into the jog. Perfect for a girl who hates running and who's running partner thought he was the next marathon great. I think we maybe ran together one other time...until today.

In May, our IMG office decided to go for team bonding in a charity/exercised charged experience: the little Giant Race which would take place in late August. In an effort to be a team player and take an interest in Ryan's hobby of running, I phoned him to see what he thought about doing the 5k (the 10k or half marathon were clearly not options if I wanted to still be alive post run). He said he was game. Truth be told, I figured since the race took place after my contract at IMG was up then we would somehow "forget" about the race. No such luck. The race bibs came to the house about 2 weeks ago.

official race bibs

A silver lining came when Ryan's knee started acting up last weekend right after his big bike race in Petaluma. I thought oh my saving grace has finally arrived. Strangely enough, I encouraged him to just walk it with me to get a little exercise together.

We arose this morning and headed down to AT&T Park to check in. We passed the half-marathon runners and a few 10k participants along the way as they began their race at 7:30am this morning. As we headed to the start line, I couldn't help but feel a sense of community coupled with some motivation. Right before we took off, Rhea & Emily joined us as the gun fired. We decided to start out jogging/running and see how we did. What I failed to forget was the pride of the man I am marrying...pride that would not allow him to walk. Bum knee or not. Inadvertently, I developed a weird since of pride and felt compelled to run too.

gearing up at the race start

pretending to be the next marathon runner

game faces on

I am surprised delighted to report that I ran the entire 5k (3.1 miles) today. It wasn't at record speed, but it was running the whole time which is quite the accomplishment for me. The finish line was on the Giants field crossing home plate which I found gnarly and inspiring. I we even got medals for completing the run. There were volunteer cheerleaders and gospel choirs along the way to help keep us motivated. My organ dance party was in full force, but the feeling of community seemed to drown it out when I thought I needed to walk. It was a pretty powerful experience and a pleasant start to the morning.

I am on the far left in the blue tank with the pink wrap around my waist...heading to the finish line!

5k run complete!

Now don't expect to see me signing up for any half-marathons or marathons for that matter, but I might be able to get through 20 minutes on the treadmill moving forward!


We are off to Los Gatos to play tennis in the Hits for Hospice (another great charity event paired with some social tennis)! We really are being good sports on this August Saturday!