Running. Not for everyone. High impact. Stressful on your joints and body but an EXCELLENT calorie burner!
In the spring of 2007, my son began his High School years. Quite an athlete. An avid soccer player but it was his speed that made him a beast on the field so he continued running track even though it was not his passion. Pre-season track parent meeting…you know how that goes. Just another parental duty. However, at this meeting, the head coach announced that he was taking a huge leap of faith and beginning a 5K run/walk to benefit the track team and UofM Mott Children’s Hospital. His enthusiasm was seeping from his pores and I became intrigued. I was at my heaviest weight at this point in my life, but as the involved parent that I was, I signed up to help coordinate the race. What an amazing experience! I had never attended an organized race and the overwhelming passion that I saw in these runners was staggering. A memorable event to say the least! So, I volunteered to help with this event for the next 4 years. My son graduated in 2011 but I did not want to give up volunteering my time for such a great cause….so I didn’t!
That fall, I was exercising on a regular basis and my weight loss journey had already begun. I walked quite a bit at a park nearby and one day, I spontaneously decided to try jogging. Holy shit! That was exhausting…. I ran maybe an eighth of a mile, if that. Hahaha. But each time I went walking, I added a short jog to my routine. I remember being ecstatic when I finally made it around the half mile path.
When the 2012 race date was set, I thought, “I’ve volunteered for this since it’s inception but what if I actually try to run it this year?”. Then, my crazy competitive spirit set in and told me that not only was I going to run the 3.1 miles but I was going to win my age bracket in my first 5K race at 40 years old. What was wrong with me????
My training began…..
Fitness Journey 