I started to run less than 2 years ago, just for fun, just because I was inspired by the people who could run. I never had any desire to run a marathon, or a runners’ lifestyle. Yet running is one of the few things that can make me feel alive after spending 8 hours in a plaza.
I will be running 16.1 km at Dam tot Damloop on 20 September. Though it is not the longest distance ever, still requires some practice as I would like to finish the race with a decent pace.
I have been away from the roads due to several reasons such as being on a holiday, being busy, being lazy, being great at finding excuses etc…I got my muse back when I went for shoe shopping last Sunday. Normally I hate shopping (or shoe shopping to be more specific) but when my friend Elina told me about a great discount on running shoes, I could not just sit and wait. I had to have one. And as a go-getter and doer, I got myself a lovely pair in 1 hour.
We are joining the race together so it is a great excuse to also practice together as we did this Monday, with our exact the same running shoes and t-shirts.
We started our route from Besiktas, then head to Macka Park, which has a challenging uphill road. But we like challenges so we went more up to Nisantasi, and from there downhill to Tesvikiye and back to Besiktas, with one last uphill split at the end.
Good sides of this route:
- Running uphill burns more calories. Burnt calories are my favorite type of calories.
- Running uphill increases your endurance. So considering we will run in Amsterdam, where roads are completely flat, this will help A LOT.
- Running uphill increases muscles, which in the end will help you to run faster.
- Running downhill makes you feel like a hero after going all the way up.
- You pass two lovely parks, Macka and Abbasaga. You can find yourself running partners, namely stray dogs at both of them.
- You get an amazing Bosphorus view and sea smell on your way to Abbasaga Park.
It was a total of 6.77 km run but can be easily increased if you go all the way up to Barbaros Boulevard.
I have a not so long way, and not so long time to go. First runs are always hard, but everyday is a fresh start.
