running Archives - See Jane Write

This weekend, for the first time ever, I participated in the Vulcan Run, a 10K race held annually in Birmingham that attracts about 1,000 runners each year.

I have never been more nervous for a race. I couldn’t really figure out why. I’ve run a half-marathon — twice — which is more than twice the number of miles of a 10K. I also trained for this race for a month. Yet, the morning of the Vulcan Run I was so nervous my stomach started to hurt.

I was convinced I’d be too slow to finish the race in the two-hour time limit or that my legs would just stop working around mile five.

Nevertheless, I laced up my Nikes and set off to pound the pavement. This race, like so many others, would not only teach me plenty about running but impart lessons about writing, too.

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Do you listen to music when you write?

Marie Sutton, author of The A.G. Gaston Motel in Birmingham: A Civil Rights Landmark, once revealed at a See Jane Write workshop that she was able to muster the energy to write the chapters of her book each night (after a long day of work and taking care of her family) by listening to Kanye West.

I’ve never had much success listening to music while I write. I tend to do better in quiet spaces, although I can be quite production in a busy coffee shop, too.

Nevertheless, music is essential when it comes to accomplishing other goals of mine — especially those related to fitness. Sometimes I feel as if my body cannot and will not make the movements necessary to run unless great music is being pumped into my ears.

That’s why when I was training for this year’s Vulcan Run 10K, which I ran today, selecting the music for my running playlist was as essential as getting in enough short and long runs before the race.

I’ve share my playlist below in case you have a big run coming up, too!