Back in the late sixties, two things happened
that are relevant to this story. When my father was 25,
his tennis partner moved out of state, and he began
running to stay fit. In doing so, he joined a relatively
small number of people who were then regarded as
"those kooky joggers" and were met with
suspicious glances. Later that year, I was born. You
might even say that I was born to run. My father's
interest in running deepened--he ran marathons, was
active in the Kansas City running community, and was even
Race Director for many of the major Kansas City races
while I was growing up. My sister and I were often
awakened early on Sunday mornings to head to a race, and
we handed out countless race packets to the eager
runners.
Despite this early exposure to exercise and
the good example set by my father, I grew up considering
myself hopelessly unathletic. I was always among the last
chosen for teams in gym class...in elementary school
kickball games I was one of those poor kids who would
would run up to kick the ball and miss it entirely. And
running...! In junior high I felt that running the mile
was absolutely the worst form of torture our
drill-sergeant-of-a-gym-teacher could have dreamed up for
us. I feared that I would expire on the track. I couldn't
understand how my father could run (for fun!) nearly
every day. Until about 5 years ago I considered
myself allergic to exercise.
By the time I reached my mid-twenties, 2 stressful
years of grad school and a slowing metabolism had left me
overweight and out of shape. My desire to look good on my
upcoming wedding day was my motivation to lower my fat
intake and to get up off my butt and move. It didn't help
that I was marrying a guy who could eat about 5000
calories per day without gaining an ounce. I didn't have
too much luck sticking to a regular exercise program
until I bought a circa 1992 Jane Fonda step, which came
with a workout tape.
My fitness level improved quickly, I was losing fat
and gaining muscle, I had more energy and I was happier
with myself. Six months into my step program I felt
confident enough to confront my fear and hatred of
running. On a weekend vacation without my step, I decided
to run. I was astonished to find that, although it wasn't
easy, I was able to jog three whole miles without slowing
to a walk! Although I recognize now that running three
non-stop miles isn't the smartest way to start running, I
was so elated that I kept on running after returning
home, using my step on rainy days. At the age of 25, I
had conquered my aversion to running, and it completely
changed my attitude about exercise and about my athletic
potential. I never would have run at all if not for my
step and those videos, which kept me motivated and helped
me to improve my cardiovascular fitness.
I've been running for over 3 years now, and I still
love it, but my running shoes have to compete with my
aerobic shoes. With a larger library of video tapes and a
health club step, I love aerobics enough that I can't
just save my videos for a rainy or snowy day. Each of the
two activities reinforces the other, and for me the
combination has been unbeatable at keeping me motivated
and injury-free.
I grew up believing that I could never run. Although
I am leaner than I was in high school, my real
psychological triumph was becoming one of those runners
that I had always watched from the sidelines. Now, for the first time
in my life, I feel like an athlete.
Wendy Niemi Kremer
