I started running a little over two years ago by doing couch to 5k. I had heard a few things about the program and wanted something to help keep myself in shape, so I downloaded the free podcasts and started it. The program was a great fit for me from the start and I loved running. I did my first 5k in July of 2009 and was so hooked. When I was signing up I had so much anxiety--would everyone else be so much faster that I would be left behind? Would I look like a dumb amateur?? I didn't need to worry. The race was the Firecracker 5k in Little Rock and it was the first time of many that I would be in awe of the diversity at road races. Looking around is so inspiring--so many different kinds of people getting out and participating in community events and keeping fit.
I was pretty content for the next year. I ran several races during the summer of 2009, finishing up the season with the Great Gobbler 5k in Maumelle, where I broke 30 minutes for the first time. Hating the cold, I didn't run much that first winter, but I jumped back in fast as soon as it warmed up in 2010. My first 5k in the spring of 2010 was a PR, as were most of them that summer.
But. I wanted to keep getting faster! I asked some online friends what I should do to get faster, and I got two answers: add speedwork and add distance. I did both, and as I started adding distance, I started to get more hooked. My first 6 mile run is one I'll never forget--it was on country and small town roads in Indiana and when I finished I felt so badass. Eventually I began training for the Soaring Wings Half-Marathon in October of 2010, which I finished in 2:10:28, and pushed myself to train for the Little Rock Half-Marathon in March of 2011, which I finished in 2:02:34.
There are more little stories of my running past--how my sister and dad and I ran several races together, how I ran a few races with my son--and maybe I'll fit them in soon. This week is the first week of marathon training. I want it all to stand out, want to be able to go back and look at the steps of this journey. Because running is about so much more than being in shape. It's about believing that I can. It's a way of thinking and being that has changed the way I look at myself, the way I look at my future. It has changed the way I pray. So--the journey began a long time ago, but here it starts again.
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