Mind over fatter

After four straight years of failed New Year's resolutions about running, I'm seriously training for my first 5K. Oh, I've walked my share, but I am determined to run one before I die. Which I could do while running.

I have the soul of a runner and the body of a wrestler.

Some time ago, I was asking my friend Sorne for some running advice. She's been doing races for years and gets up at dawn to train with some dedicated ladies. I asked how she ever got to the point of being able to run for miles and miles without quitting and she informed me that when you can push past the point when you want to quit and get to your second wind, you'll build endurance.

She was so right. Turns out that running is a mind game.

I find myself pushing past the point where I would have quit before, working toward incremental goals. Telling myself that I'll quit when I get to one mile, then to a mile and a quarter, and I find myself at two miles without sucking wind when I wanted to quit at the half-mile mark.

So maybe I'll become a runner after all. Oh, I don't see myself doing marathons or reducing my body fat to 10% anytime soon, but I am excited that I am on the path of running three miles a few times a week within the next month.

If only the rest of my life were that way. If only I could will myself to get more work done, get over boys, or not drive through McDonald's after my runs, I'd be in business.

'Til then, I'll settle for jeans that fit.