I wanted you to see what real courage is.... It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.
Atticus Finch, To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
Why am I afraid of running in circles? On a track, you just go around and around. No trucks to hit me, no tree roots to cripple me, no dogs to bite me.
Fear of failure? Maybe, but I'd like to think my ego isn't so inflated that I believe it matters if I run those 600s in 2:43 or slower.
Speed work seems to be one of the only domains in which the fight or flight choice our brains make in the face of fear can't work. It's both. I fight. I fly. I go fast. For a lap and a half. Then faster. Repeat.
Speed work is also one of the few areas in my life that I feel like I can control fully, strangely enough. It's where I'm Kris who runs, not Kristina who drives a station wagon. On one of the few occasions I did speed work with Nate at the track, I was kind of startled when he called me Kris. But not in a bad way.
It's because that's who I am when I run. And then I had a similar experience yesterday when someone who knows me primarily as a runner had the impulse to call me Kris as well, and that was more than fine with me. My family calls me Kris, too, but they've been doing it longer than my running has been in the picture. There's only one other person who calls me Kris.
Maybe they all knew the runner in me before I did, the one who likes control and power and speed. The one who's hitting the track today a 4 to run in circles, fast.
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12 comments:
Have fun at the track today, Kris.
I am called by different names in my real life too, though Chris is one of the rarer ones. There are too many Chris-es in my family, it can get confusing. :)
You're a super-runner with a secret identity! I like it!
My sister's name is Christina as well. Only fam and close friends call her Chris/Christy. She actually takes offense when strangers or people she doesn't know that well call her that LOL.
Love the quote... I'm getting ready to head to the track this morning too... With a workout that included the question, "Can you run that fast?"
I'm Mitchel when I'm training. :)
It's as though I could sense it, Kris who runs. ;)
My feelings about speed work have been well documented, but once the speed work session is over it is the most fulfilling of all workouts.
love the quote :)
I think we are just going to have to start calling you speedy, not Kris!!
i did 600s on the track last night too... i was scared too but they went great! no doubt you will rock yours :)
Christy (that's her real name) and I are going to start doing speed work together. Should I be scared?
I like the separation between your everyday life and your running life -- guess that's when you know you're good! :-)
Run fast and far!
It just makes you extra excellent on left turns! :)
I love the quote too. It's like when you are at mile 23, you know you are toast, but you just take one mile at a time. Once you start 23 miles and one step, might as well make it to mile 24. Run Strong!
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