To Run or Not to Run: Yet Another Running Journey
How a Friend’s Running Journey Inspired Me to Start My Own
I’m no stranger to running, and I have been running on and off for a while now, but stepping out onto the trail as a runner instead of just a walker or hiker is something new for me. A few weeks ago, I came across my mate Justin’s (Rosco) blog. He wrote about his 160km UltraTrail run in Kosciuszko. That’s right, this mf'er ran an insane af distance, and I’m a bit surprised at how reading his blog has sparked such a significant shift in my thinking and desire to run.
Rosco’s blog post and homepage were the catalyst for my shift in mindset, and the intro page stood out to me:
I started Running in 2021 after seeing a photo of myself and realising I had become overweight. I was smoking on and off, drinking more than I should have been and also suffering from a lot of depression and anxiety that I was taking medication for.
It was a little provocative, and I thought, “Well fuck, if he can go from unhealthy to running 160 km in three years, why can’t I?” I also felt like I had fewer hurdles to overcome; I don’t smoke or drink much, and I have (mostly) dealt with my depression/anxiety already.
He didn’t sugarcoat the race report (blog post) and he talked about his challenges, emotions, and the copious amounts of mud. I appreciated that honesty!
Like so many of us, iirc, he started running as a result of COVID, but I’m not sure if that’s what made him confront his health and decide to start running. I’m also not sure why he chose running specifically, why not walking, hiking, or paragliding, but I should ask him about it. (Note to self: Ask Justin why he chose running.)
I knew Justin was a runner since our daughters were friends at school. When I was picking up my daughter after a playdate, I vaguely remember discussing running with him and hearing that he didn’t finish a race in 2023. Initially, I didn’t grasp the significance of the distance he was running or the injury that set him back until we talked more recently. That was his first attempt at the Kosci Miler.
Jump ahead to November 2024, I was running more consistently. It made me feel good, I felt stronger, had less stress and anxiety, and I could think more clearly. I strongly believe that working from home has allowed me to run before or after work, or on my lunch break without worrying about stinking up the office if I didn’t shower immediately. (Yeah, I know, gross.)
I have found myself pushing my limits more and more, “Let’s see if I can go another 2k today.” While my runs are getting longer, I don’t see my distance PB of 13 km as anything too exciting since it’s still a long way from 160 km. But running 160 km isn’t my goal, at least not yet.
I guess we usually associate peers and motivational figures with significant people like parents, bosses, or famous successful individuals. So seeing that in Justin (I hope he never reads this—it feels a bit embarrassing) is new for me. I’ve never really found someone inspirational before. Is that weird? Already having an appreciation for the effort and time required to run shorter distances, seeing Justin’s Kosci run on Strava was inspiring, and reading his race report on his blog made it even more motivational.
So, now I’m doing it too
Ok, so now I have all the fangirling over Justin out of the way, I decided to set myself my first challenge and running goal, which was more substantial than “let’s add 2 more k’s” to each run. I was under no delusion that it would be easy, or fast, so I (feeling freshly motivated) decided that I want run the Kosci30.
The Kosci30 is a 32-kilometer trail race that is part of the Ultra-Trail Kosciuszko by UTMB. It’s much longer than anything I have run before, has a fairly decent amount of elevation gain, and I’m confident I’ll have plenty of time to train for it considering it’s not until November next year. So tickets aren't even on sale yet and plenty of time to work out my strategy.
Another positive of talking about my running obsession with my family (probably too much. I think my wife is getting sick of it), has inspired my sister-in-law to run the Kosci30 with me too! So at least I'm not doing this alone!
I don’t know where this will take me. Maybe I’ll only get as far as 13k, or maybe I’ll work my way up to a half-marathon. Maybe I’ll catch the running bug and aim higher with a longer 50k or 100k ultra. But for now, I’ll keep this shit easy, stick to the consistent runs, and enjoy the small wins along the way.
So if you’re sitting on the fence about running, I encourage you to take that first step (literally). Don’t overthink it, start small, and just do it, and then let me know so I can have a running buddy 😅
But hey, if you want to stalk me on Strava, I'm OK with that, here’s my profile!
