So I have not posted in a loooong time. Life happened and posting just got put on the back burner. A lot has happened in the last year. Well, not a lot happened but I have changed a lot. First off I started running. June 2010 I started the Couch 2 5K with several ladies from the office. I have always hated long distance running but was a sprinter in high school so I was hoping I could do it. I knew I needed to do something to lose weight and get back to the person I wanted to be. I was horribly out of shape and a good 50lbs overweight. I could not believe I had let myself go that far and was not happy with myself.
So the journey began. We started Couch 2 5K in June of 2010 and by July, I would not say I liked it, but hated it less. There were many days I wanted to quit. I am not a morning person and we got up at the 'crap of dawn' (as my daughter says) to run and being old and overweight I had shin splints, pulled muscles, and aches and pains. I decided I needed a goal so I signed up for a race for the middle of August called The Midnight Streak. Training was better with a goal in mind and I paid money to enter so I was not going to quit. On August 14th, 2010 I ran my first 5K!!! I was not fast by any stretch of the imagination and it was 103 degrees at the start of the race but I completed it and was very proud of myself. I am more proud of the fact that I persevered through the training, kept going and DID NOT QUIT!!!
Through all of that, a funny thing happened. I realized I actually enjoyed running and missed it when it was an off day. I could not believe I was enjoying this. I was feeling better and losing some weight. I realized that running gave me something to do for me. It gave me time to focus on getting healthy. I pray a lot when I am running. Sometimes just "Please Jesus, help me keep going!!!" but prayer non the less. I pray for my husband, girls, and other things that are on my heart. Prayer is a good distraction for me while I am running. It helps me focus on higher things and gives me time to work out things stewing around in my head. I also listen to music when I run. I found early on that music was also a good distraction and good motivation. I run faster when there is a fast song on, and can tell myself "you can walk at the end of the song". Music pushes me and I love to run to worship music. There has been many a day I would have not made it through without Derrick Hensley, JT Murrell, Stephen Cole, and Chuck Dennie! (Worship guys for my church, LifeChurch.tv) They have no idea how much they have helped me throughout my training and how much I love it when they start singing in my ear. (Thanks guys!!)
I have since gotten faster and have ran several more races. Mock 5K's at Lake Hefner, a 5K at our staff event (aka, Family Reunion), the Turkey Trot in Edmond on Thanksgiving, and again the 5K at our staff Family Reunion. This year I beat my time at the Family Reunion by over 8 minutes and placed 3rd in my age group! I was shocked to say the least.
So it has been a long journey and I am still running. I actually call myself a 'runner' which I never thought possible. I have been running 2-3 day a week since last June and have lost 35 lbs!!! It has come off slow but I know it will never come back. I will not let myself go there again! I still have 15- 20 I would like to lose and thanks to starting boot camp with The Shape Project (which is another blog post) in June I am hoping it will go away soon.
I am so thankful for this journey and that I decided to do something to get healthy. I am thankful for the change I have seen in my body and confidence I now feel again. I am also thankful for the struggles, pain, and sore muscles I have had throughout this process. I am most thankful for my savior, Jesus Christ, that has gotten me through this journey. Without him, I can do nothing!
If I can do it, you can to. What are you waiting on?
