It’s the last Friday of January (AND THANK GOODNESS FOR THAT- let’s move quickly on to February) which means I’m joining Marcia for Runfessions!
My runfession starts with a clothing issue. I’ve been wearing the same few items of clothing for years now. At this point I have one skirt and one nice top, which I wear for every single “dressy” occasion, from my son’s high school graduation, to concerts, to wedding receptions. If I don’t do something drastic, I’ll end up wearing the same thing for my son’s college graduation in May… so I took myself shopping.
I don’t even know how to shop anymore. Everything looks either too old or too young for me, and I always end up in the workout section or the pajamas (these are clothes I can understand!) But on this particular day I took the plunge and picked a few items to try on.
In a dressing room, with a three-way mirror. Wow, that was depressing. I’d rather not go into details, but I was reminded of Nicole’s excellent post on embracing our changing bodies, while simultaneously grieving for the clothes we have to say goodbye to because they no longer fit.
How does this relate to running? I’m getting there…
I’ve been saying for a while that I want to run a 50 mile race in 2025. I’ve had my eye on one in April, but for some reason kept putting off registering. I don’t know if it was laziness (think how hard I’ll have to train!) or fear (maybe 50 miles is too hard for me?) or just a general feeling of post-holiday “blah,” but I runfess that I just couldn’t commit to the race.
After my discouraging shopping expedition, I came home and REGISTERED FOR THE RACE. Not because I think training for a 50 mile race will transform my body in any way- I’ve given up on that notion long ago- but because I want to take the focus off how my body looks, and put it on what my body can do, where it belongs.
You guys! I’m running a 50 mile race, the Skunk Ape Endurance Run on April 26th. Now that I’ve registered, I’m getting excited!
Do you have any big, exciting events coming up this year?
Do you like shopping for clothes? (I still have nothing to wear…)
35 Responses
Excited for your race and it’s pretty soon!
I like shopping athletic attire especially in lululemon, I did my shopping this time in DC and love every piece I got. It’s such a daily joy to wear something that is comfortable and cute. I haven’t signed up for any race yet, I’ll enter to lottery for NYC marathon, if I don’t get it, I will find a rather flat/cool race for this year. What excites me more is the machu picchu trip that I am planning with a friend.
If I could buy all my clothes at Lululemon, I’d be happy!
NYC- I hope you get in.
Yes! Well done for signing up!
I’m excited for Boston in April and for the Comrades ultra in June. I’ll need to recover the second half of the year, ha!
Oh you’re running Comrades! That’s super exciting. I can’t wait to hear all about it- and Boston, of course!
That’s exciting to have a 50-miler off on the calendar!! I like clothes shopping, it’s just tough finding the time (though I unexpectedly scored a nice pair of black knee-high “riding” boots while on my perfume quest (deets in the blog, LOL).
I was super annoyed with this shopping trip because I specifically set aside the time for it, thinking I would get it all done and have a nice, hew wardrobe! ha.
I wear the same outfits too. The good news is that see different people each time teach. Dressy clothes. Haven’t needed any. Luckily.
It’s impossible to shop anymore. No stores!!! Just Amazon.
Woo hoo. 50 miles. You got it.
Me. Just 13.1 every month.
Yes- great point. That’s the other thing. All the stores I used to shop at have now closed. No wonder I can’t find anything I like.
Congrats on committing to the 50 mile race! That’s so exciting! Over the holidays my kids took me shopping and I was introduced to wide leg jeans. All my skinny jeans, which I haven’t worn in years went out. I wore the new jeans a few times but now I’m back in my comfy pants. Ha! Your son is graduating already!! Time flies!
Comfy pants for the win. I haven’t worn jeans in years. And yes- HOW is my son about to graduate from college???? I just dropped him at his freshman dorm YESTERDAY!
I do most of my clothes shopping at 2 stores, and one of them is Athleta! Thank goodness I can wear “athleisure” to work most days.
How exciting about your race! I need to get some things on my calendar to look forward to.
The skirt I keep wearing is actually from Athleta- maybe I just need to go back there and get another skirt : )
I hate shopping for clothes, unless they’re second-hand. Even then, clothes shopping is my least favourite thing to do. My body type is hard to dress (small waist, large hips/thighs) and pants never fit but I live in a climate where I need to wear a lot of pants. Sigh.
I wear A LOT of clothes on repeat. I prefer wearing things out and moving on vs. having a ton of options in my closet. That said, I do have lots of semi-dress options. Nothing super fancy (like no cocktail dresses or ball gowns), but a lot of casual dresses because they are my FAVOURITE thing to wear and I love how put together I can feel in a flash and they fit my body so much better.
I have the opposite problem now- my waist is too big for my hips (I don’t mean it’s bigger than my hips- but clothes that fit my hips don’t fit my waist, if that makes sense.). I think I need to learn how to sew my own clothes!
YES YES YES!!! Congrats on committing to 50 miles!
My wardrobe is sparse and clothes shopping is not fun. I did a heavy closet purge last year, but strangely enough my closet still seemed to be full of a ton of clothes that I can’t and if we’re being honest probably won’t wear again. This week I did another cut.
The two special events that I’ve had to shop for in recent times are a formal dress from my niece’s wedding and a dress for a fancy dinner that I’m going to next week. I went to the mall and everything was so expensive, and it all looked terrible on me. I try to play the part of a tough cookie but I can share that the mall visit did not make me feel good about myself. Amazon to the rescue! In both cases I was able to find something for $50 that looked great and more importantly makes me feel like I look good. The only effort on my part was combing through all of the customer reviews with pictures to make a judgement call on the quality plus suss out how the dresses would look on real people.
Hmmm…. amazon. I’m going to give it a try. I used to not like shopping online, but it’s so easy to make returns now. This could be my answer!
Okay but don’t leave a girl hanging!!! WHAT DID YOU BUY??? I got all invested in your clothing and now I need to know. Oh wait, I see that you still have nothing to wear, so that indicates you didn’t buy anything…ugh. Well I get it. Although I do love new clothing I a) need to wrap my head around my new body shape, b) I have to be really cognizant about the waistline. The rest of me is similar to what I used to be, so I really have to look at how the item is made and how it fits. If I were in your place I’d look for a dress that has a bit of an empire waist, maybe one that’s kind of short so you can really show off those legs. It could be super cute. I’ve become more of a dress person than a skirt and top person, because now I’m finding skirts don’t fit so well. Ah, I wish we could go shopping together. But shopping in person isn’t as fun as it used to be either, because it seems like every store has little in stock and they’re always like “well I can order it for you online” and ma’am, if I wanted to order it online I would have just stayed home and done that.
Ha yes Nicole- in person shopping is not what it used to be. I do feel like I would have better luck if you were with me though. And to answer your question… all I bought that day was a t shirt (like I don’t already have enough of those!)
January seriously felt like three months to me! I think that’s because the first week I was still off work for the holidays, then I eased back into work, then I had my race, and then I’ve been recovering and getting back into running.
I’m so excited for you for the 50 mile race! I haven’t signed up for my next race yet, but it probably won’t be til late summer/early fall to give me a chance to just run for fun for a couple months.
January was soooooo long. I’m glad it’s over. I’m excited for my race too, and April is just about the latest I would want to do an ultra down here. Training through the summer is not fun.
I actually like shopping for clothes but having said that, I wear a lot of my same favorite things and neglect half of my closet. It helps to find a brand you like the fit of and pick items that coordinate. I’m excited for you and your 50m race. Can’t wait to follow along!
Thank you Deborah! And, I’m currently neglecting about 3/4 of my closet. A purge is in order!
That is exciting that you signed up for a race. I think focusing on what your body can do rather than how it looks is the key or one of the keys to body acceptance. And I think that is part of the crux of why how I feel in my body right now is NOT GOOD. I can’t do the things I like and want to do. Heck, I can’t do most basic tasks like blow dry my hair, do dishes, cook, etc. I’m at a real low point but am trying to focus on the fact that this is temporary and I will feel better in about 7 weeks when I’m out of the splint and can work on regaining the function of my right hand. Sigh.
The biggest event ahead is our trip to Mexico but I don’t plan to buy anything for it. I will not be in peak shape for this trip and that’s fine… I am thinking of it as a self care and couple bonding retreat. I will likely not like how I look in pictures but Phil hates taking pictures so maybe we just won’t take any. I don’t know. Gee I am fun to be around right now. Lol.
And I have NEVER enjoyed shopping, even when I am in the best shape of my life. I am missing that gene.
Well, that really puts things in perspective. It would be SO HARD not to have the use of my right hand! That makes worrying about how my body looks seem pretty stupid. As you said- this is TEMPORARY. But sheesh- seven weeks till you get the splint off? That’s a long time. But it will pass.
Bravo on signing up for the race! And I love what you said about focusing on what your body can do.
3-way mirrors are just evil, by the way. lol
Yes- I’m avoiding three way mirrors from now on!
50 Miles!! Hero!!!
And can I say how much I LOVE that first photo of you with the glow from the streetlamp enveloping your shoulders?
I really can’t believe January is over…
Thank you Maya! And yes… January is over. February will be a good month… I hope.
Because I am such a picky lady about clothes (fabric, labor/environmental concerns), I have a small wardrobe. But I make that wardrobe work for me. And it also means I don’t have to shop very often. It also means everyone has seen me in everything, but I’m not convinced anyone pays attention. I literally wore the same dress three times this past week and no one said a word to me!! I think it’s because no one actually noticed.
I put the date of your race on my calendar so I’ll remember to send you good luck for it! I can’t wait to hear all about your training!
Great point- no one is noticing what I wear. No one will know if I wear the same thing to college graduation as HS grad, unless I make the foolish mistake of posting photos on Facebook (high school graduation was the last time I was on Facebook!)
I DO like shopping for clothes. I love a good sale. I love finding something I didn’t know I needed. Wink wink. I need nothing new. If you lived closer, I would take you shopping and force you/show you how to enjoy it? The 3 way mirrors kill me because I can easily see how thin my hair really is, like – my gut does a flip. It’s that bad.
Congrats on the race, but I have to say driving 50 miles makes me question whether or not I am going somewhere that is worth it. So running somewhere for 50 miles? That would never occur to me.
Clothes shopping is truly terrible, so I understand your pain! I will usually just fall into a pit of despair afterward so kudos for channeling that despair into something productive! I am sending you all of the good luck for your 50 miler. That’s INSANE, Jenny! I am so in awe of you!
Ok. My favorite thing here is the whole “I need clothes, I want clothes, I went shopping for clothes, and I’m registered for an ultra race.” Perfect.
I don’t mind shopping. I do like to try to look cute. That being said, Im boycotting all the stores right now for…reasons, so I don’t know that I’ll be shopping any time soon.
So, flowy elastic waist dresses I don’t mind shopping for, but shopping for fitted pants/jeans is the worst! I am also critically low on “nice” clothes, including for work. Oops.
Hooray for registering for the race! Super exciting 🙂
Woo hoo Jenny!!! This race sounds super exciting! I cannot wait to hear more about your preparations and how the race goes!
This was SUCH a good point: “I want to take the focus off how my body looks, and put it on what my body can do, where it belongs.” YESSSSSS. That is what it’s about, right? Our bodies do so much for us and accomplish all sorts of things and THAT’s what matters.