Happy Runniversary

I know my runniversary is around this time of year, but I can't find my very first running log so I can't pin down the exact date. I count my runniversary from the first 1 mile run I completed, and I distinctly remember being elated to be able to run 1 whole mile! Here I am, 3 years later, contemplating a marathon in December-go figure!

So, now that I am a runner, here's the stuff I did not know about running, but I know now:

• A marathon is 26.2 miles. I had no idea-I just knew it was a stinkin long way to run. Ask me after December 6 how long I think 26.2 miles is to run.
• Runners generally don't run every day-they take rest days. Oh, sure, there are runners who do run every day, but most don't. I thought if you take a day off, all that training would somehow just fall away from your body and the next day, when you went out to run, you wouldn't be a runner.
• Shoes wear out really fast. And they don't look worn out-they look fine, but they're worn out anyway, and your legs will know they're worn out and you will think something has gone terribly wrong when in fact you just need new shoes.
• People have different gaits and need different shoes to compensate. Now I know that's why there's about a gazillion different kinds of running shoes on the market.
• Runners taper before a race. They actually cut back on their miles and rest up. I figured you just ran as much as you could right up to the race, and then you just ran the race.
• Runners aren't jocks. At least the runners I've met aren't jocks, and by jocks I mean anyone who is a snob about their sport and doesn't like talking to neophytes. Sure, there are probably runners out there like that, but I've never met them. When I ran my first race, and the other runners found out it was my first, they were really friendly and helpful and cheered me on.
• When you run a race, you put the bib (that's what runners call the number they pin to their shirts) on the front, not the back.
• Don't ever, EVER, wear the shirt they give you at a race before you run the race. Seriously. This is like a very bad race etiquette thing-I think you're supposed to earn the right to wear the tshirt by running the race first.
• Cotton is evil. I ran in cotton tshirts when I first started and it was fine for short runs. Somewhere around my first 2 miler I realized cotton is evil and there was something better out there for running

There's a lot more I learned over the last 3 years or so, but those are the highlights. Some time ago, fellow blogger Bruce reminded me of my own words whereby I had said something like "I don't need to run any farther than 5 miles". Funny how stuff like that changes with time. Now, 5 miles seems like nothing-a throw away run. I'm glad I've learned all this stuff and I hope to learn a lot more as time goes by and I continue to run. Happy runniversary to me!