Be nice to runners

True confession: I used to be a bit of a running snob.  I would see someone running down the street, and try to evaluate her form, speed, and whether or not I could beat her. Have I mentioned that sometimes I'm a bit too competitive? Anyway, this all changed after I had my first child.  I thought I had recovered pretty fast and was ready to start running as soon as the doctor cleared me.  I had run all the way through pregnancy, so it should be no big deal to jump back on that horse.  Boy was I wrong. My brain was telling my legs to go forward, but they were each marching to the beat of their own drummer. One knee drove forward, while the hips tried to run and hide.  My core was a bowl of jelly. And we won't even begin to discuss my newfound nursing bosom. Even my arms which should've been unaffected didn't seem to remember how to do their job.  I tried talking nicely to myself.  (its okay, you can do this.) Then I tried bribery (just to that corner and then you can rest). Next a stern lecture (get the lead out you slow poke, suck it up and run!), followed by pleading and bargaining (please keep going, I will give you a day off tomorrow if we live through this).  At some point during this trip around the block I realized anyone who saw me would think I was an uncoordinated oaf who had never run before in her life.  

Then I realized that the people I had been judging were possibly in the same boat.  Maybe they had major surgery.  Maybe they were former Olympians taking an easy day.  Maybe just running was a miracle. It really didn't matter.  The point was that everyone is at a different place in his or her training and race of life, and I shouldn't judge them for being someplace different than me (as I hoped no one was judging post-baby me). We are all in this together, and we should celebrate the fact that we are able to run at all.  I realized that like most things in life, it is impossible to determine what is going on in a person's life by watching them in only one situation, and maybe we ought to be a little kinder and more generous toward one another.  So cheer a little louder for the runners you see struggling along the side of the road today, and celebrate the joy of running.