PETA Pack: Staying Fit and Saving Animals
In high school, P.E. was my worst nightmare. Flickerball, pickle ball, capture the flag: I hated them all and tried my hardest to come up with excuses to sit on the bleachers. The worst periods by far were on fitness-test days—the dreaded mile run. Those were the days when I got really creative with my excuses. One year I faked a bee sting; another year I “got hives” when I tried to run.
Now, despite my phobia of physical exertion and my love of the couch, there are a few things that will get me to do just about anything involving lacing up sneakers and strapping on a pedometer. One of those motivators: animals. Driven by the incentive to save lives, I’m gearing up for an uncharacteristically active winter, undoing all those years of glorious unhealthy inertia by joining the second annual PETA Pack. A group of runners who train together and raise money for PETA, the Pack is the perfect synthesis of fitness and kindness. With the help of professional coach Darren Middlesworth, we’ll train together for the Oakland Marathon/Half Marathon/5K on March 28, 2010.
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But you don’t have to live in the San Francisco Bay area to participate. Last year, 77 runners from across the U.S. and Canada trained remotely, and those who couldn’t make it to Oakland for the big race found a race to run in their hometowns. Together they raised $57,000 for PETA’s Investigations and Rescue Fund, and this year we expect to double that figure.
Training begins January 3—the perfect time to make a New Year’s resolution a reality. Join today and check the PETA Pack blog for updates.
Written by Logan Scherer
