Winter Running

It was cold this week. Much colder than I thought it would be at this time of year. There are pros and cons to running outside in the cold. My main complaint about running in the cold is all the stuff I have to wear to stay warm. Putting on tights and jackets takes extra time before I can get out the door.

I used to be hesitant to run outside in the cold. In fact, my first winter back in Utah I pretty much didn't run outside. I commuted to a gym and ran on a treadmill for most of the miles put in. The next winter I decided that I was going to confront my fear and actually run outside. I got some tights and put on a fleece pullover and before I knew it I was able to run outside in 20 degree weather without any problems. However, this first winter outside I limited myself to just running on a main road with plenty of lights. I didn't deviate much from the same path to get in the miles. 

The next winter I overcame even more of my fears and ran on the backcountry roads that are very dark. It turns out I love it. I liked running where it's incredibly quite and the only thing out there is me leaving tracks on a half inch of freshly fallen snow. 

I think that running has been a constant cycle of getting out of my comfort zone and adapting. People assume that I have always been fast but rarely do they know the time and effort I have put in to getting where I am and that there was a clear point in time where I couldn't run a mile without a near death experience to go along with it. I hope that I won't or don't assume others to be good because of some easier path they took to get there.