Like many girls, I dreamed of becoming a cheerleader for the football team, just like those popular pretty girls from American movies. But I arrived too late, the team was already formed, and practices were in full swing.
I still had to choose a sport, so for the fall season I joined the cross country running team. Basically, it’s running long distances outdoors, kind of like “trail running” in Russian.
Honestly, I hated running. But I decided to give it a try. And guess what? After the first month—or maybe even sooner—I started to actually enjoy it. We practiced outside after school every day, running through the city, and at the end of each week we had competitions with other schools.
At the beginning of the season, I ran 3 miles (about 5 km) in around 40 minutes. By the end, I set my personal record at 29 minutes!
I fell in love with running, with our coach, and my teammates were just amazing. Since cross country is more of an individual sport—your time depends only on you—there were no fights or weird team drama (like in basketball or volleyball where only the “star players” get all the spotlight).
We were super close, even had a couple of cross country parties, and one guy from the team is still one of my closest friends. Plus, you know how easy it is to gain weight from American food? Well, while I was doing cross country, I never gained weight, and honestly, I think I even lost some.
I spent so much time outdoors, learned how to breathe properly (so it wouldn’t hurt like it usually does when running), and even though later I played basketball and joined the powerlifting club, my first sports season stayed my favorite. I stayed close with my teammates all the way until I left.
So yeah—even if you don’t like running, I’d still totally recommend trying cross country. It’s awesome :)
I still go for a run every now and then.
Try it yourself: imagine joining a school team, even in a sport you never liked before—you might just discover your new favorite thing!