I am not a runner!!

I know this and it doesn’t come as any surprise to me.  Any running stuff I do is only for cardio purposes only and not because I have any passion for running.  I admire people who are into it and can run any distance. 

For me I find I do much better on a treadmill than in any real world setting, like the outdoors.  I have run outdoors in parks and on tracks before, but only as a means of getting cardio done for contest prep.  When I have done this, I don’t think I even go 1/8 of a mile before I feel like I am sucking wind pretty hard.  I will push through and do what I set out to do, but it’s more sheer determination and stubbornness, and not skill or because it comes naturally.

On a treadmill I tend to walk a bit, maybe a half mile, and then run a mile or mile and a quarter.  I will repeat that sequence for a specified time to complete my workout.  Now I don’t know much about settings and what is a good or bad setting on the treadmill.  Typically I set it on random, walk at a 4.6 and run at 5.7.  I imagine people watching me do this are probably laughing to themselves wondering why I bother pretending to run when it’s nothing more than a fast walk.  I don’t care, it gets the job done and gives me the workout I need. 

Lately, the past few months, I have discovered the elliptical machine and have made that my main source of cardio.  I can seemingly go a much greater distance on there in the same amount of time compared to the treadmill.  Not sure how the elliptical motion equates to running, but I enjoy it immensely.

This morning I went back to the treadmill, just for variety, and this time decided when I ran I would set it on 6.o and run 1.25 miles each time.  Well, I did it but was reminded again – I am not a runner!  It was a great workout and I will do it again, but I could actually feel the lactic acid build up in my quads and I think I prefer that to happen only during a leg workout in the gym and not on the treadmill.  Maybe that is a normal part of running, but I will feel silly if I am sore tomorrow!