Looking ahead with hope
Until I started running, I didn't realize how much of a mental exercise running can be. See, when running, you always have the choice of slowing down to a walk. Struggling for air? Why not just walk a bit? Muscles telling you they don't like what they're doing? Slow down and take it easy. But when I'm going for a run, I'm not going for a walk. It's not a pleasure stroll. I try to absorb the beautiful views, because I'm not going to stop or slow down to take a picture. I only started running a couple of years ago. It started out as a random curiosity: if I started running, would I like it? I found I did, and I found I enjoyed the challenge of pushing myself to conquer hills and go further distances. But I also found that I didn't feel like running every time I went out for a run. Some days I would negotiate with myself during the first mile, telling myself, "if we're not enjoying this after a mile, we'll just go home." I'd set my foc...