13 Miles

1998.

Bill Clinton was getting impeached. Denver beat Green Bay for the Super Bowl. Michael Jordan was playing for the Bulls. ‘Titanic’ was at the box office (the boat sinks). Frank Sinatra died.

I was in college. And from what I can recall, it was the last time I ran.

Now, don’t get confused. In the last 10 years, I’ve run to the store. I’ve run to the game. I’ve run to the bathroom. I’ve even run to the hospital.

But I’ve never actually ran, to my recollection.

Until now.

My name is Jack Sheard. I’m an editor at The Independent. And as I’ve said, I’m not much of a runner. Or exerciser.

I’m not sure if it’s because of my beautiful wife’s not-so-subtle hints that I’ve put on a few extra pounds, or the fact my pants continue to get tighter, or even if it’s because as of June 1, I’m no longer in my 20s. Whatever the reason, I’ve decided to run again.

The Independent will have a story Monday, June 2, on how to train for a half-marathon. Each Monday following, we will print a workout schedule for the week, including how much you should run each day. It will lead up to the Bill Seymour Half-Marathon at the end of August. And I’m going to run it.

I think.

And I’m going to bring you along with me. I encourage you to try it, too. I don’t want to be alone, you know. Each day I will write in this blog about my training. I figure if I tell the world (and I know you’ll all be reading) then I’m pretty much required to go through with it.

So, enjoy “13 Miles.” And hopefully you’ll see me on the trails. If you do, please don’t laugh if I’m crying in pain.

It may be another 10 years before I run again.

Please, as we do this together, leave comments about your training. Share your experiences. Let’s do this.

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This entry was posted on Friday, May 30th, 2008 at 1:29 pm and is filed under Training | . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.