Running Like a Girl

by Alexandra Heminsley

[Leah]

When I heard about Running Like A Girl by Alexandra Heminsley, I wanted to read it immediately. You see I’ve been on a bit of a diet recently, and I’ve lost 9 kilos, which is not a bad effort. It’s since gone a bit sideways, though, and I’ve stabilised at my current weight, and I’ve decided that the best way to carry on losing weight is to do exercise. But, exercise terrifies me. I’m quite terrified that if I went walking or running (or a bit of both), people would see and judge and say I’m not a runner. I can’t run! I’m not athletic. I used to cheat when we did cross-country at school! I HATE running. But I know that if I want to lose weight and I want to get my legs to be less chunky I will have to do exercise, so I bought some running shoes when I was in England… I just need to actually start running.

So, Running Like A Girl. I wanted to read it because I wanted it to inspire me! I wanted Alex’s tale to inspire me into running, and it has. For the first time ever, in my life, tomorrow I will go outside and I will run! It may be JUST as terrible as Alex’s first run, and I don’t aspire to do marathons as Alex does (I don’t think Tenerife has any marathons, to be fair) but I do want to get fitter and running is something everyone can do, despite my can’t-do attitude. It’s so easy to say you can’t do something – I can’t speak any other language than English for example, but I can’t claim to not run because as Alex herself says, after hearing it from her dad, everyone can run. It’s just a matter of doing it. That is what will be ringing in my ears as I attempt to become a runner. I can do it, I just have to get over the fear of doing it and that is why I loved Running Like A Girl.

I thought Running Like A Girl was excellent. Anyone who has ever thought about running, who has ever said it wouldn’t be possible needs to read this book and read about how Alex overcame that and has run 5 marathons. Yes, it’s hard, and yes, she struggled during most of her marathons at one stage or another but I didn’t finish the book feeling put off by the bad things about running. No, I took away the message Alex was telling us that running is therapeutic. If you get past the bad things, if you keep going and keep your legs moving, the payoff is more than worth it. And I find myself inspired. I liked how the novel was split into two parts, chronologically Alex’s journey to becoming a runner and then a second section that helped would-be runners. Giving the history on famous female runners, telling us what you’d need with you if you were to run a marathon, injuries you might incur. It’s filled with information and I am totally inspired. I’ll soon be a runner, and I can’t wait for tomorrow to come so I can go running, or at least attempt it, because if you never try, you can’t succeed.