On a whim sophomore year, I decided to join track. There I was, with a running history limited to the mile in physical education class, embarking on what would prove to be an incredibly painful yet exceedingly rewarding experience.

Since I knew I would probably run slower than anyone else in the track program, I decided to join distance on the basis that a slow distance runner is less pathetic than a slow sprinter. Throwing wasn’t an option with my lack of body strength, and pole vaulting sounded like a good way to impale myself.

During practice, I only ever led the pack for the brief moments in which we turned around and I momentarily shifted from the back to the front before kindly letting every other person pass me again. I’m not going to lie — running hurt. “Easy” days felt painful, and harder workouts made me want to quit on the spot. But I never quit.

My coach encouraged me on every run to keep pushing. He said running while you’re tired provides the most improvement. Above all, he told me I had a special role as the slowest-moving team member: I pushed everyone else to try harder.

In my first year on track, my mile time dropped 26 seconds, from 6:25 to 5:59. While my teammates celebrated breaking five minutes or even less, breaking six minutes meant the world to me. It meant I had pushed through the pain and the bad thoughts, and in doing so achieved what I considered great.

Since the first season, I have continued to run throughout the year, sometimes more often than others. Each run clears my mind and makes me feel healthy and fulfilled, and much of the soreness and shortness of breath I experienced when I began track has subsided.  

Now, in the midst of my third year of track, I have a new personal record to beat that I made last season. But what it is, and whether or not I beat it, isn’t all that important. What matters is that I have fallen in love with running and will continue to keep running for as long as I can — because the rush of satisfaction and accomplishment I get at the end of any run always outweighs the pain.