It’s actually not even really about the running

Holy smokes! The last learning project update before the final wrap up post! Where did the time go?!

This week was wild. Wait, didn’t I say that last week too? Well, whatever the case, it’s true. Coming to the end of a spring semester with 3 classes and 2 young kids is not for the faint of heart and I am finding out what I am made of these past couple weeks. On the running front, I stuck to my plans, adjusted along the way, and was proud of my progress by the end of the week.

My initial running plan included twice-a-week runs with my neighbour and I am happy to report that we have stuck to it. I have also started doing a run or two extra per week as I learn to like running more and more. It’s actually not even really about the running, it is about how I am deciding to spend my “down” time and being proud of making a healthy choice in those moments.

As I mentioned in my last post, I am aiming for 58 km this month and while I won’t give away my exact numbers (you can wait til my final post for that), but I am inching closer and closer with each run, which has become motivating. I think I will continue short-span goals to keep me motivated in different ways.

For documenting this week, I tried a few different things out. I am trying to be ‘on trend’ with what the running peeps are doing on Tik Tok, because, you know, I’m a runner now, duh. For my first video of the week, I did a picture per km, like the Tik Tokkers do (example here). I was highly disappointed with the fact that the viewer cannot see how much more I am sweating with each km picture – it makes it look like I faked it and I assure you I did not…the sweat satisfaction was real but didn’t transfer to the shots.

My second run of the week was an utter fail. I was pushing a stroller, which always makes me slow, and on top of that it was so windy, making it extra difficult. I was so focused on how difficult the run felt that I forgot to do any recording. Fail. In my defence, it is really hard to run with a stroller and record any footage at the same time. You can see my reaction/emotion to forgetting to record here.

For my last run of the week, I brought my oldest son, Casey. He scootered alongside me and loved every minute of it. This was my favourite run of the week by far. You can watch the video here. After my first video from this week where I came home from a run and immediately had to read his bedtime story, he asked me how my run was and had a few follow up questions. I liked that he was interested in what I was doing, so I figured I’d invite him along for one this week so he could get the inside scoop. I think it is so important for kids to see their parents make healthy choices and to see their parents being physically active. I used to go to two different personal trainers who both allowed kids in the gym because this was part of their core values as well. Kids will do what they see, plain and simple. It is a piece of the pie as to why I chose this for my learning project too; I want to have healthy habits and hobbies to model that behaviour for my kids. This run also solidified the fact that I can multitask all day every day, except when I’m running…I can only have one job when I’m running and counting kms with picture/video obviously isn’t for me. Self-awareness is key in the learning process, I guess!

Motivation for Casey “running” with me: this video. I do not anticipate this to be our future, but I definitely want him to enjoy runs with me in the future!

@itsemflynn

Taking you guys theough my BEST RUN EVER and soilling the tea on a new technique I accidentally figured it that seriously CHANGED THE GAME. 🏃💨 #beginnerrunner #runningforbeginners #midsizerunner #biggirlswhorun #nonetorun #runningworkout #couchto5k #nonetorun #nikerunclub

♬ A-ha – Take on Me – rifat anjar nur rochmat

I find there is less technique videos for me to watch for my purpose, rather I am catching and absorbing tid bits here and there in the running videos I watch. For example, in the above video, I can definitely relate to how she is feeling but I also learned that it really does make a difference (placebo or not) to shake your legs out between run and walk sets. I have no idea about the science (or not) behind it but she is right that it mentally makes a difference, so I’ll keep that one in my practice. I have also found that I am building mental toughness, as she mentions, with each mini-goal or with each extra running minute versus walking minute per run; it is a mental exercise as much as it is a physical one.

This week, I clocked over 13 kms. That is a huge accomplishment for me and I feel really excited about how that gets me so much closer to my monthly goal!