Word Perv

The other night I decided to head out and run some hill intervals. I know my readers who are runners are shaking their heads and saying outloud, “Ugh. Hills.” My non-running readers are shaking their heads and saying outloud, “That girl is out of her fucking mind.” Well dear friends, both are correct.

Hills are hard when running. When faced with one during a race, many of us groan and express our true dislike for them. Given my crooked little back, hills are especially hard as half the muscles don’t work and so the convex side of my back (the “outside” of the C curve that my spine mimics) does the vast majority of the work, helping to stabalize my core and push me up the hill. Since my new neighborhood has a lovely little hill nearby, I decided it was high-time I start doing some work so I could better conquer hills in the future instead of being intimidated by them.

So Tuesday evening, after it had cooled a bit, I laced up my shoes and headed out. I jogged to the base of the hill and then fired up it, sucking in air hard by the time I reached the top. It was humid, the usual this time of year, so breathing while running - especially up a hill - is difficult. I paused for a second then ran over and back down the hill. Reaching the bottom I turned and fired back up it. If my first uphill bound felt bad, the second felt terrible. I reached the top and exclaimed, “Fuck!” Why was I doing this again? Before I could answer myself I turned and ran back down the hill, happy I only had one more set. Reaching the bottom I turned and pushed myself up the third and final time. The first time was torture, the second time I questioned my sanity, but the third time? The third time I felt my adrenaline kick in, the muscles in my legs pulsing in that pleasant way I’ve grown to love. I stood up straighter, pumped my arms harder, and finished that last hill stronger than the previous two. Once again running (not jogging people, this is running!) over and back down the hill, I paused, the adrenaline still pulsing through me, wondering if I should run the hill once more. I decided to settle for 3 sets, and vowed to run this at least once a week, increasing the number of sets until I can honestly say: I’ve conquered the hill.