Officially a Runner!

I think it is finally safe to say, I am officially a runner! 

Almost all my life, I have tried very, very hard to like running. I joined the high school track team my junior year and have struggled with running ever since. I joined for multiple reasons: first of all, it was one of the only high school sports teams I could join without having to try out (I was never very athletic), to get out of gym class (once again... I was never very athletic), to get some new sweats and t-shirts, and the best reason of all, all my friends were doing it. My days on the track team were very unsuccessful, and I can honestly say I never did actually RUN in a track meet. Because I wasn't used to running, my whole body ached. I limped around school for the entire season. I could hardly walk, let alone run. Needless to say, my experience on the track team (or lack thereof) pretty much scarred me for life. 

UNTIL, my junior year of college when I had a roommate that was crazy about running. She would hop on the treadmill at the gym and go 7-8 miles no problem. Her enthusiasm for running got me thinking that I could do it, too. But once again, running was such a struggle for me. I would run two miles and feel like death afterward. I would be sore for days. I tried sooo hard, but just never got the hang of it. Since then, I have been running on and off. I get really into it for about a month, and then I just... QUIT. 

My motto has kind of always been "I try really hard to be a runner."

Well, today I can finally admit that I AM A RUNNER!
For months now, I have been running my little heart out. I found two running plans that I thought would be easy enough to follow: 6 Weeks to Your First 5K and when I finished that, Spark Your Way to a 10K. Honestly, I am shocked that I have kept up with running for so long. I found that having a specific plan to follow has really helped to keep me motivated. Of course it was a struggle at first, but lots of ice in the beginning really helped me get past that 2 mile mark. I can now run 6 MILES... without stopping. 1 mile was alright, 2 miles was hard, 3 miles was even harder, but 4 miles, 5 miles, and 6 miles were not too bad to progress to.

Now if I don't get my scheduled run in, I miss it. But let's not get crazy, I still have those days where I just really don't.want.to.do.it. I focus on how good it will feel at the end, and that's what keeps me going.

Are you a runner, or do you try to be a runner?
What keeps you motivated to complete your workouts?

P.S. Since I am almost done with this running program, I plan to continue running 3-4 days per week. BUT, I am also looking for other workouts to do on the days I don't run. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!