0 Exercise

I hate running. I hate running with a passion. It is miserable, soul-sucking exercise that holds no joy for me. The worst part about running is that it bores me; with other forms of exercise there is non-stop action or something to hold your attention like a TV  Running is mindless and not in a good way. Given my choice in a gym, I would ride an exercise bike or hop on an elliptical trainer before jumping on the treadmill. At least with those, I could read a book or magazine while exercising or watch television. For the longest time, those were my choices when doing cardio at the gym. I hated running outside, dealing with traffic lights, cars, random pedestrians, and who knows what on the sidewalk so that was a no-go.

Yet, slowly but surely, I have been forcing myself to run. It started out with running intervals on the treadmill at the gym. Intervals helped to reduce my boredom. I barely had time to think about how much I disliked running before I had to start sprinting again. There wasn't time or energy to complain. I then moved to running on the river walk by my apartment. I take the dog with me so I can kill three birds with one stone. I can tire him out, take him for his "walk" and get some exercise for myself. The river-walk extends up at least 3 miles north so if I felt like being really ambitious (hint: I don't) I could run a 10k with him. Right now we have been doing about 2 or 3 miles at lunch time and it feels great to get out and get some air and have a great view of Roosevelt Island and the East River. I also feel less guilty about the dog as well, knowing that he is getting some exercise instead of laying around, as he is wont to do.

I feel like running is the best exercise I can do, I feel and see the tangible effects that running has, and it gives me a new appreciation for the activity. I try to run 3 or 4 times a week for at least 20 minutes and I feel better and healthier for it.