In the wake and at the brink...

In the wake of my 10k race last Sunday and on the brink of the starting line to my half marathon training program, I pause to reflect...

I started running just over 1 year ago. After a few knee injuries in my teens and nagging aggravations through my college years, I thought I could do a lot of things, but running wasn't one of them. I have big (size 10), flat feet and a right hip that sits higher than my left - both strong contributing factors to my knee issues.

Last year, on Labor Day, I resolved that I needed to get back to regular exercise. I wasn't sedentary by any means at the time, but movement provided the opportunity for head space and better overall physical health. Exercise has always done my body good (since the age of 9 when I got my first workout VHS tape), and it was time to get back to a consistent routine.

I started a program that required running with great chagrin. Thankfully, in most of the workouts, the running was assigned in small distances. However,  each week I was also expected to run a 5k. Knowing my history, I took it slow, running yards at a time in between leg raises, squats, and burpees. I conveniently replaced those longer runs with rollerblading - a low impact sport that provided sustained cardio in a mode that I loved and knew my knees could tolerate. It wasn't until 4 weeks in that I attempted my first 5k, and do you know what happened?

I didn't die! My knees didn't buckle. My patella didn't slip. I completed my first 5k in 35:01. 😲 Very soon after, the running bug sunk it's delightfully sharp teeth into my legs, and I signed up for my first 5k race. I have never looked back.

Now, just over 1 year out, I revel in the miles I have put in, the distances I have achieved, and the countless mental battles I have won. I have overcome more than one minor injury. I have learned about running form, gait, and how to make improvements despite my flat feet. I am ravenous for every piece of running knowlege I can find and what takeaways I can apply to my own training.  I am brought to tears watching running greats like Shalene Flanagan, Desi Linden, and Eluid Kipchoge cross finish lines in history-making races, knowing even in the smallest sense the work and sacrifice it took to get there. I am about to embark on the next leg of my own journey.

My goal race: The Shamrock Half Marathon, located in Virginia Beach, scheduled for March 17, 2019. I am 20 weeks out as of tomorrow - more than enough time to prepare. They say this winter is going to be a rough one. I don't care. I am resolved. I am dedicated to seeing this journey to it's end and beyond. In this last year, I raced a 5k, an 8k, a 4 miler, and a 10k. It's my next stepping stone. Someday, I aim to run the NYC Marathon and Boston. If I want it bad enough, I'll get there. It's going to take a lot of hard work, sacrifice, tears, soreness, mental grit, and miles. But I know I've got what it takes because I have already done what I never thought I could. Ready or not, here I come! This is my time to RUN!