Wait a minute. Did I just become a bunker runner?

First off what the hell is a bunker runner? My definition is myself because over the last few weeks I’ve decided to up my run game in preparation for soccer returning.

The Aha! Moment arrived over a month ago when my girlfriend decided to run 1 Mile at minimum for 42 consecutive days. Of course I supported this BIG time because she wanted get better at running overall and needed a way to get fitness in while quarantined.

Then I decided to join her for a weekend run one day. She was doing at least 2.2 miles with breaks in between and of course I thought “Pfft! I don’t need a break!” Yeah about that sir…

My body was not in running shape AT ALL. Even with my modified strength training, the last time I did some cardio was on soccer fields in competition months ago. Huffing and hacking with every step crashing into the concrete and an ever-running faucet of body sweat dripping.

Ahaa! Yup I need to run this back. So the following week I made a commitment to run 4 Miles each week. My run form was awful, I didn’t stay light on my feet, stride non-existent and breathing all over the place as I almost crashed on the treadmill. Twice.

So I did some research, watched some videos, and SLOWED DOWN. “BuT I tHouGht YOu RuN tO GeT FaSTer!” Eventually the long game is to sprint faster but first I had to relearn to run slowly.

My plan attack for the first 2-3 weeks was the following: Light jog speed, get the knees up, deep breathing inhale/exhale to match my steps. It was tough at first because I was relearning how to run nearly from scratch. Once I got the hang of it then I worked on extending my stride since I have longer legs than the average bear.

By week 4, I was in a good spot. My mile pace time went from 13:25 to 10:47. I was able to actually breathe out of my nose while sprinting instead of my mouth primarily. Body pains started to diminish and I lost 7 pounds with no real dietary changes.

There have been days where the jets have been primed and the miles set ablaze; those feel great. Honestly, it’s the times where I step to the track or treadmill with nothing but regret and questioning. The moments of WTF AM I DOING?!? then turning up the music before disappearing from the world. Just me, the miles ahead, and the progress made upon this journey.

I just started running towards a goal. And the bunker runner was born.

“When you come up with goal, visualize that goal is on the other side of the world. Then go chase it.” -Kazie

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