This morning I ran the first of 9 qualifying races I’ll need to run this year to gain guaranteed entry into the 2013 NYC Marathon. Years ago, when I first started running, I got into the marathon by lottery and proceeded to train by the book. A few weeks before the marathon, during a short maintenance run, I fractured my tibia. That obviously put me out of the race. I tried again the following year, and just couldn’t get my muscles to do what they needed to do. After the second attempt, I decided to forget about the marathon as a goal.
Well, years have gone by and I’ve continued to run. I’m still learning about my body and my running form. I’ve suffered various running related injuries from IT band syndrome, plantar fasciitis, and a sprained ankle from tripping. I can be somewhat of a klutz. With each run and each runner, I feel like I’m getting more confident with what my body needs, and can adjust to avoid injury. While some friends may tell me my body is actually telling me not to run, I think it’s just the opposite.
So today was the first step (or first thousand steps) in running a marathon. Race #1 of 2012, check! 8 more to go.