February 13, 2012 was the start of my new beginning. The one where I tried to make myself love running, and though I may not actually love the act of it, I love the feeling after completing a run and the results I'm seeing in the mirror. I started Couch to 5k that day and began a new outlook on running. At the end of April I ran my very first 5k (Phillies Charities 5k), then I ran two more in May. One for Juvenile Diabetes and one for my school's PTO. Friends started discussing running the Wild Half Marathon and the 8k on August 26th and all I was thinking was how Abby would turn one the day before.
Fast forward to a run a couple of month ago where it hit me. The whole reason I started running was to feel better, not just for me, but for my kids. I was sluggish and tired all the time with little to no energy to play. I didn't want to be that mom. I wanted to have energy, be fun, and yeah...look pretty good while doing it. So that's when I convinced Sean to do the half marathon that he showed interest in and I'd sign up for the 8k. Once we got the logistics of staying somewhere and babysitters, I committed to running it.
Today I laced up my shoes and tried completed the longest run I've ever done. 4 miles. 4 whole miles. Crazy! I've never run 4 miles in my life but today I did it. And when I felt so tired and sore that I just wanted to stop and walk home, I thought about my kids. About how I want to be around for a really long time for them. About how I want to have the energy and ability to play all day with them. And that's when I pushed myself that much harder to keep going, to finish that whole 4 miles. And when I was done? Well, I looked down at my MapMyRun app and was mad at myself for not going a little further so I could have "closed" the rectangle I drew on the map with the GPS tracking! ha! There's that self-guilt again. But then I stopped and thought "wow. I really just ran four miles. I did it. And to think it's only been six months of irregular running." I'm pretty proud of myself.
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| {Avg. 11:55 min/mi...slow & steady} |
My thoughts on life right now:
It may not have been the fastest I've ever run, but I ran.
My work clothes may actually fit me this year.
I need to keep up this healthy habit.
You are doing so , Staci. I don't know how you do it with kids, because I honestly have to push myself without them. We can work out a much as you want this year! :-)
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