Most people who know me know that I like to run. I'm not a fast runner - not even a very resilient runner - but it's something I love to do. I've got a few half-marathons under my belt and I've really gotten into this whole running thing. Or should I say jogging, since I'm usually not moving fast enough for it to be considered actual running? In any case, it's become my main hobby right now... which is kind of sad, now that I think about it.
Now, whenever I talk about running with my family or really old friends someone ends up saying the following words:
'So... how did you get into running anyway? You never used to be interested in sports before...'
Yeah, that's an understatement! When I was in school I was the second slowest girl in my class. For real. I sucked in sports. All sports. I was slow, weak, got winded in like five seconds, had poor hand-eye coordination (actually, that's still an issue), poor balance... I sucked at everything! Because of that I was 'sick' most of the time and tried to avoid doing anything physical as much as I could. I didn't understand people who woke up at 6 am and went running. What was wrong with those freaks?! Did they really hate themselves that much?!
Then I went to the university and became a bit more aware of my health. I thought I should take up a sport - any sport - just because I was constantly tired and weak and just needed something besides school to occupy my time. I tried with pilates... but that became boring after a few months. I tried dancing and realized my coordination still sucked more than you could even imagine. I tried to run a few times... and have up after a week because I couldn't last longer than 10 minutes and it almost killed me every time. Yeah, I was really not feeling the whole 'active lifestyle' thing.
And then I moved to Japan.
Oh, I know. It seems like most of my stories either start with or are completely about me living in Japan but I can't help it that it changed my life in a lot of ways. In any case, it all started with snacks. See, I have a really hard time resisting snacks. Any kind of snack food is like a drug to me. I guess you could say I'm food-curious: if I see an interesting snack that I haven't tasted yet I feel the need to get my hands on it. Fun fact: if you have a bad snack habit then Japan is the worst place to be. Their snack game is on point! There are countless sweet and savory snacks available in new and interesting flavors that look good and taste even better... or really weird... it could really go either way (NEVER try anything uni-flavored and KEEP AWAY from the spaghetti-flavored ice-cream... yeah, that's a thing and it's disgusting). What makes the snacks even more enticing is the fact that they have seasonal flavors and regional flavors. For example, let's say you really want strawberry-flavored chocolate drops - they're only available during Winter. Once Winter is over you can't find them anymore. Strawberry is replaced by sakura or matcha or whatever the flavor of Spring is. And then there are KitKats. Different flavors of KitKats in different cities and regions. And I'm not talking about boring 'white chocolate' or 'peanut butter' KitKats. There are wasabi-flavored KitKats, azuki-bean flavored KitKats, sweet-potato KitKats.... So, so many flavors...
I'm kind of hungry right now. Could you tell?
Okay, so considering I had a snack-addiction and Japan had all the snacks in the universe it was really no wonder that I gained like a hundred kilos in two months. Okay, it wasn't that bad but it was pretty awful. After almost half a year of eating like a monster with the munchies I realized that I should start losing weight before my bed collapsed under me. So, since I didn't have money to join a sports club and it was spring break in Japan I decided to start running again.
The first few times didn't go too well. I lasted for maybe ten minutes and was ready to collapse after that. I was pretty sure running wasn't for me and I needed to find another way to exercise... and then one night Tytti, my dear Finnish friend, offered that we could go running together. I was more happy to join her because I hoped running with someone else would keep me motivated. And it did.
The first time we went running together we must have run over 8 km. It took us a while because I was super slow in the beginning and I admire Tytti for having the patience to stay by my side the whole time. I'm sure she wanted to go faster but she'd promised to help me through it and by god she did. Against all odds I made the whole distance without stopping once and that filled me with immense pride. So the next time Tytti asked me to join her for a run I jumped at the oppurtunity.
We formed a little running group that grew bigger and bigger as the new students that arrived in April started to join in. I think the biggest group we had was at least six or seven people. The group wasn't always this big - most of the time there was three or four of us, sometimes even just the two of us - but it was really fun running with a big group. Really freaked out the natives: a huge group of foreigners running down the street late in the evening is enough to make most older Japanese people uncomfortable. I discovered the joys of running. It was a great way to clear my head, chat with my friends and still do something useful with my time.
Summer came and while we still went running we didn't do it as often anymore. Summer in Nagoya is basically hell - especially for a Northern European like me. I can kind of handle the cold but I am powerless against heat. Seeing as my heart is made of ice, heat really isn't good for my health. The heat was so awful that I spent my days sprawled out on my hardwood floor not moving an inch and secretly hoping we would get a freak snowstorm in the middle of June. During the night I could barely sleep because I can never rest well when it's too hot... and since I couldn't sleep I decided to go running.
The first time I went running alone it was 4 in the morning. I couldn't sleep because of the heat and humidity and I was feeling restless and annoyed so I decided the best thing to do would be to go for a run. And it was pretty amazing. Sure, it was dark so I couldn't run my normal route and had to keep to the streets but it was still incredibly relaxing. There was no one around, the usually busy streets were completely empty and the city just looked so... peaceful. And it wasn't hot as hell anymore. One thing I really miss about Japan are 24/7 convenience stores on basically every street corner. After my nightly runs I would always drop by the local Lawson and get a refreshing drink or some fruit and the occasional ice cream. There's nothing better than a cold Pepsi after a long run, especially at 6 in the morning (no, Pepsi didn't pay me to say that... sadly).
I thought I would give up running after I came back to Estonia. I didn't have anyone to run with and I'm notoriously bad at keeping good habits. But then I went to run one evening in Tartu... and then again two days later... and before I knew it I had signed up for a half-marathon. One reason I can't seem to shake my running habit is the fact that running just makes me feel... free. I can go for a run whenever I feel like it and it's a great way to clear my head. I feel relaxed when I run. I can just focus on running and for a little while I don't have to think about anything at all... and it's a great way to get to know your hometown or the area around it. I've found a lot of interesting places on my runs in Tartu, Haapsalu and everywhere else.
By now running has become a part of my life. My main hobby. A habit I can't seem to get rid of. Really, whenever I miss 'run day' (yes, I have designated days in the week I have to go running) I feel guilty. It probably isn't healthy (the feeling guilty part, not the running part) but I can't help it anymore. I have to go running at least once a week, otherwise I just feel... wrong... Some might say I'm overdoing it. I might agree, especially when I get random pains in my hips, knees and ankles every few weeks... but hey, they go away after a little while so everything is okay, right? Right?
I really am an awesome physio, aren't I? (yes, that was sarcasm)
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