Runner's High

Let's pretend that you and I are going to get together for coffee. ONly instead of chatting with present-day me, you'll be chatting with me from one year ago. So we'll have to meet in Philly. Hope that's okay. We'll go to Crossroads in Roxborough.

So, we're drinking our coffees and catching up and you ask me, "hey, how's the running going?"

"Ugh," I tell you as I roll my eyes. "I'm almost up to a mile now, but it's really hard. And it makes`my chest hurt."

My, how times have changed!

I'm not exactly sure when the change happened, but at some point between my willing myself to run a mile and my completion of a half marathon, I realized: I LIKE to run! I look FORWARD to running! And when the weather isn't great, I get pouty because I can't run. It's a very drastic change.

Some things, however, do not change. For example, the first 10-15 minutes (in my case, the first miel to mile and a half) are still pretty brutal. I have to keep reminding myself that while it WOULD be nice to turn around and go home and lay on the couch, it will be even better to press on and run further before I head home. And I'm right- afterwards, I DO feel really great. And as the distance I've run increases, so does the euphoria. I don't know what causes this sensation (asides from an obvious release of chemicals in my brain). Maybe it's the feeling of satisfaction about how far I've gone- maybe it's my brain's way of saying "Hallelujah, the torture is over!" I don't know. But I DO believe that the feeling has a name: Runner's High.

It's a bizarre feeling. I feel tired, but energetic. I feel fresh and awake and alive. And it's awesome.


Now let's pretend that we are getting together for coffee today. We'll go to Champignon- it's right down the street from my apartment. This time, when you ask me how the running is going, I'll gush to you about the half marathon I'm running in July, the challenges of staying hydrated, and my quest to find a good pair of compression socks.

My, how times have changed.