Lab Test Reveals Local Runner Is Actually a Jogger
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For years, Patricia Benatar has self-identified as a runner. The 30-year-old technology consultant has joined running clubs, bought running gear, and run numerous races—all while using the word runner to describe herself.
All that changed this week when she got the results of a lab test showing that she’s actually a jogger.
“I was stunned,” Benatar said in a phone interview. “I still am, actually. It all seems so surreal.”
“I’ll need time to process this, that’s for sure.”
Benatar said she took the test on a whim, using an over-the-counter kit to submit a mouth swab DNA sample to a laboratory that promised quick, accurate results.
“Honestly, I was bored and I thought (taking the test) would be fun,” she said. “I’d seen these ads and thought, Why not give it a try?”
That whim, she said, has turned her life upside down.
“I’ve always sort of poked fun of joggers, and now it turns out I’m one of them,” said Benatar. “I feel like I’ve been living a lie for all this time.”
Still, Benatar said, her family and friends have been supportive, and she knows she has much to be grateful for, including her health and a stable job. And, she added, this new knowledge has made other parts of her life more understandable.
“At least now I know why I’ve discovered so many dead bodies on my runs,” she said.
“Sorry—I mean, on my jogs. Guess I’d better get used to saying that.”
