I Run? I Run. I Run!

With the Disney Princess Half-Marathon Weekend a little over a month away, training for myself and Veronica has kicked into high gear. Given our over-achiever selves and "go big or go home" personalities, we decided to register not only for the Princess Half Marathon, but for the Enchanted 10K as well. Completing both races will earn us a third medal for the Glass Slipper Challenge. Two back-to-back races for a total of 19.3 miles.  Yes, 19.3. Do the math - 6.2 + 13.1 = 19.3. Who are these girls?

Thinking back to when we first met in late February of 2003, two college undergrads connecting over a love of Evanescence and the North Campus dining hall at the University of Maryland, I never would have imagined us as runners.  Veronica was a girl scout and camp counselor, an avid hiker, canoe/kayak instructor, horseback rider, and physically active - playing intramural soccer and dancing.  I considered my walking to class enough physical exercise - I never participated in sports, often holding myself back with thoughts of "I'm not good enough" or "I don't have the time".  Instead, I threw myself into babysitting, reading and art.

Fast-forward to 2013, ten years later and still fast friends. We had each moved several times over from Maryland to Minnesota (both attending graduate school mere miles apart), to South Carolina, Florida, Mexico and back to Maryland.  We were actively busy but not active.  We continued to do a variety of physical activities such as kayaking, hiking, walking and the occasional soccer game, but we were not consistently doing anything.  Factor in cancer and babies, respectively and the beginning of our careers, we were busy.  Suffice to say, we were not taking care of ourselves.  We knew something had to change and we both turned to running for our own reasons.

Our sneakers post-race - our first 5K, the Hagerstown Color Splash

As you learned in our last post, Veronica began running after celebrating five-years cancer free.  My experiences with running to this point were warm-up runs before the beginning of PE in middle and high school gym classes, the occasional attempt during a long walk and chasing after children.  My youngest son, Jeremiah was born January 30, 2013.  While on maternity leave, I would take Jeremiah for long walks and upon returning to work, I had dropped some of the baby weight, but not as much as I would have liked (when do we ever?!).  I kept walking and trying to eat better - I scoured Pinterest for ideas and while on Facebook, came across a childhood friend's post about a blog she had begun to write about leading a healthier lifestyle.  She had decided it was time to stop talking and start doing. She talked about wanting to run in a local race and how she had begun to work out.  I enjoyed reading her blog and thought it was amazing that she was preparing to run but thought to myself, "I could never do that."

I was wrong. I can do that. It was hard but not impossible. A few short weeks later, the friend whose blog I had been reading was killed.  Unexpectedly and horribly.  A childhood friend I had spent summers with was no longer alive.  She would no longer be smiling, writing or leading the healthy lifestyle she had begun living.  She would no longer be able to run.  Sadly, it sometimes takes a tragedy to revisit one's own life and her death got me thinking, "why couldn't I do that?" I knew the excuses well.  I also knew I could keep making the same excuses or I could attempt the "impossible" and try.  So I did. I put on my sneakers and I went out for a run.

I made it 30 seconds before I could go no more.  God, it hurt so much. Who did this for fun?! But I didn't give up. I ran a little more each time and before I realized it, I was running the first of many 5K's and soon, hooked.  Despite how much I was running, it wasn't until almost a year had passed that I considered myself a runner. Amid all the "You know you're a runner when...", I did not consider myself a runner. I wasn't running the full lengths of every race, I wasn't running fast and I wasn't running every day.  In fact, it took the comments made by Veronica in a recent conversation to force me to acknowledge the truth: I run.  She was discouraged by the fact that despite our shared dedication to running, we ran at different paces.  Immediately I found her comments to be absurd. One, I don't think I'm fast. Two, who cares?! Running is one of the most physically and mentally demanding things we do, but we do it.

I write this to all those who are just beginning to run or considering it.  It is not easy.  It is a fight. You might go fast, you might be slow. You might run purely for exercise. You might choose to compete. You might run a local 5K, a marathon or no race at all.  But - I tell you this, if you are joining the rest of us who put on our shoes, put one foot in front of another and run, no matter the pace - you are a runner. Never give up, just keep swimming and we love you.

Veronica and myself post-race at our 2nd 5K - Shape Diva Dash