I have avoided calling myself a “jogger” for a long time… I kept saying I am just getting into it… just trying to be active, nothing more… but the fact is I can honestly say I now LIKE IT! I really do! It took the whole winter but I feel confident enough to call myself a jogger… or at least to be open to telling people I jog.
(these are my steps… you know, what was in my head when I set out to master jogging… going from HATING IT to ENJOYING IT)
1) Proving to yourself that you are disciplined, that it isn’t just a fad and that you are not a fraud…
Joggers have a reputation. They are strong, disciplined and really passionate. I didn’t wanna be a joke and jump into calling myself a jogger too quickly, so this is why proving I had the discipline to keep it up was important to me. Started jogging shortly after getting our dog, Riddick, to keep him well exercised. When I started to see benefits in my health it became something for me too. I got up almost daily and jogged with my dog before the kids awoke (around six). I managed to maintain this for the whole winter. The discipline it took alone to getting up and out there made me feel pretty good about myself.
2) Being willing to be spotted jogging.
Long before jogging myself, I always spotted them. I followed their form and wondered about their style of run and their outfits… So going from early, and dark, morning jogs to doing it during the light of day was stressful for me. Thankfully I was able to start into this stage while still in my frumpy winter gear. I didn’t want to be spotted doing a shot-y job of what is called jogging. What if my running form looks like the funky chicken and I just don’t know?! Daylight brought out self confidence issues in the jogger me, but the harder step was letting the bulky winter wear go and dawning the work out gear for warmer weather
3) Buying and wearing those tight work out outfits.
I like mary janes (a type of shoe, flats) and dresses, big flow-y dresses… not a sporty girl… sooooo the sporty gear sure was intimating and felt so foreign when I started wearing it. I just had to tell myself over and over to stand up straight and suck it in baby!
It was also really hard for me to invest the cash on shoes that weren’t super cute. My very sporty biking husband informed the clerk “DON’T let her pick based on how they look!” The clerk informed him she had a lot of colorful types that no one else wanted and was more then thrilled to pawn them off on someone like me. This made me grin. They are as cute as sneakers can get, I assume, COLORFUL and very comfortable. (Pssst! Did I mention they match the little jogging skirt I had picked up just before the shoe clinic visit?! Don’t tell my husband!)
4) Jogging socially!
(The coffee!)
Well this is all I have for now. Ramblings of everything that has been bobbing around in my head since I started this adventure. I am a happy person in my body and all the more as I continue to exercise regularly.
P.s. Sorry, no jogging pictures of myself or my jogging pals… speaking of confidence… I don’t know about them but I don’t think I am ready for a jogging self photo on my blog yet:)
TTFN
yay!! I LOVE this post. I can relate to it all. I will jog with you anyitme!! text me when u feel like running. I’m running almost every night, except for wednesdays.