It was being a runner that mattered, not how fast or how far I could run. The joy was in the act of running and in the journey, not the destination. – John Bingham
As long as I can remember, I wanted to be a runner. I love the image of of runners. Running takes practice and dedication. Forget the treadmill runners! I wanted to be a road runner! (ummmm…. beep beep 🙂 I wanted to run to the beat of my music with the wind on my face. I wanted the hard ground under my feet. I wanted the discipline it took to keep going. I wanted to know what it was like to tell people, “I ran 7 miles this morning, no big deal.”
It only seemed natural then that one of my first, where no Natalie Spencer has gone before moments should be running! So, while I was listening to Jen Sincero’s, You are a Badass, my motivation turned into determination. It’s like this audio book was made just for me! Jen Sincero told me everyday how amazing I was! She recommended that I follow certain steps to manifesting everything in the world that I wanted. She told me I was a BAD ASS!
I believed every word she said. There was no messing around. She told me that if I believed I was a runner (at least in my interpretation :), then I was a runner. So, on my quest to build confidence, (and run) I woke up every morning and Jen Sincero and I practiced my running. I started with a few confidence builders that she recommended to my badass self. I wrote positive affirmations on all my mirrors so I would see them all the time. I pinned up motivational quotes and aspirations everywhere I spent a lot of time. I printed out versions of myself that I strive to be and put together a massive vision board.
I started with walking. The first day I told myself that 30 minutes was my jam. I would walk for 30 minutes all the while listening to Jen (I like to believe we’re besties) telling me all about the ways that I could improve my strength and determination. By the end of that first week, my shins and calves were tight, my toes hurt, and I was sitting on the edge of my Epson salt filled bathtub screaming, “F- you Jen! I thought we were friends!”
But then, something amazing happened. The soreness went away. I started walking longer and longer, faster and faster. I was up to 3 miles a day and I tell you I was hungry for more! My clothes started to fit differently. My energy levels started to change. And me and my i-watch were inseparable. I found myself trying to race with my own self every day! Pretty soon, I was beating my goals and setting new records. I was walking with a certain pep in my step that was evident to all the other walkers out there on Surrey Rd.
My confidence levels were through the roof! I’ll never forget day 24 of my crusade. That morning, I was so confident that I went out for my morning walk with a pair of shorts on! You should’ve seen me! I was the shit! My legs hadn’t seen the sun since the early 2000’s. My swagger was so intense that other walkers crossed the road when they saw me coming. It was on this morning, with Jen Sincero giving me a big dose of Badassery through my head phones, that I decided it was time for me to run.
There is a bridge in my neighborhood that crosses over a lake. That morning, the sun was just coming up. I was all alone with the glory of the morning. It was in the middle of July and the summer heat was making fog clouds over the water. The ducks were gliding on top of the lake. It was a picturesque scene.
I determined that I could run across the bridge without stopping. I took a couple of deep breaths as I approached my starting point, and then, as if a buzzer had sounded, I took off! It was everything I thought it would be. I ran to the rhythm of my shoes hitting the road. My ponytail swayed left to right as the sweat began to bead down my nose. Jen was in my ear the entire way, encouraging me and cheering me on.
It was about half way to my destination that I heard her say something like, ” If you want to be something, then say that you are. And don’t just say it, beat your chest and pump your hands in the air and scream it!” So, very naturally, all the while running, I beat my hands on my chest, pumped my fists in the air and screamed at the top of my lungs, “I AM A RUNNER!”
It was at this moment that a man ran right by me. He breezed past me to my left and looked me dead in the eyes. From all accounts, he was a simple man with long shorts, a plain gray shirt, and more importantly, no head phones.
I immediately turned red with embarrassment. What in the world of earth just happened? I kept imagining what he must’ve been thinking. He’s out for a morning jog and ahead of him is some Rocky want a be, beating her chest and pumping her hands in the air like she was just let out of the loony bin.
I toyed with the idea of just walking the rest of the way home. For God’s sake I had just been caught slinging affirmations around while wearing a pair of shorts and a brand new i-phone runner’s case on my arm. I was a poser. He would go to work and have a great story to tell around the water cooler about the crazy- want to be runner on the bridge and I would take a huge confidence blow. Shameful of my over the top display, I immediately stopped running and started the long walk home.
But, when I turned the corner there he was- WALKING! He was walking! He only ran the bridge too! I’d like to think that he ran the bridge because he saw me running it. I like to tell myself that he ran that morning because I inspired him to do so. Well, me and Jen Sincero.
I decided that day that I was a WOGGER, or maybe a WUNNER. What ever floats your boat. I now walk/jog or run/walk on my way to being a full fledged runner. I am up to 4 miles a day now and my confidence is over the top!! This story is for all you WUNNERS out there! Keep it up!! Keep it going!! Be over the top with your self motivation! Do whatever it takes to get you where you want to be!! Say it loud, say it proud! YOU ARE A RUNNER!!