Following up on a recent post about the question “is running a habit or an addiction?” where I concluded that the answer is “yes”, the next question is “is running a gateway drug?”.
First, it starts with a 1 mile “fun run” with the kids over Memorial Day weekend. Well, that wasn’t too bad, felt pretty good actually, I’m going to do that again. Next thing you know it’s three times a week!
Your next-door neighbor who is a runner mentions that he’s going to sign up for a 5K run over July 4th weekend, would you like to join him? Well, sure, it’s only a couple more miles, why not. Wow, now I know what they mean by the “runners high”, I like that.
Next thing you know, you’re running a 5K every weekend. Love that “runners high”!
What? You say the local running club is sponsoring a 10K on Labor Day? I’ve got to sign up for that, it’s only two 5K’s! Should be a piece of cake, right?
What, another 10K on Thanksgiving morning? I’m in! That way I won’t feel guilty about eating all that turkey and mashed potatoes at dinner and if I fall asleep afterward, well, I’ll have a good reason for that too.
You say there’s a half marathon in town on Saint Patrick’s Day? Well, a half marathon is not much more than two 10K’s so why not? Can’t think of a better justification for drinking green beer. Wow, that was intense, maybe I’ll take it easy for a while before the next one. Say at least 2 months? Oh, good there’s a half marathon on Memorial Day!
You say there’s a new marathon coming to town this fall? Well, a full marathon is only two half marathons, so I’d better get signed up just to be sure I get a spot.
Well, that was really hard, I’m glad that’s over with. Now I can take it easy and relax for a while.
What? There’s an ultra-running event coming up!
It seems that the answer to the question is “YES”.
