Running Reflection

Running was fully on my mind this weekend. Maybe because I've been talking to friends about joining my Ragnar team, or because I got some fun running gear in the mail this week, or most likely, because my FIRST MARATHON is in less than a week (and I'm tapering so I'm really not running as much as I wish I was). Regardless of the reason, I've been looking back at everything that has gotten me where I am today, which is  6 days away from toeing the start line of the LA Marathon.

Let me preface this story by saying that I HATED running growing up. Not just disliked it, but hated running with the fire of a thousand suns. I played softball, which required very little running, and on top of that, I was a pitcher so if I got on base, someone would be put in to pinch run for me. Laps around the field before practice were painful for me. Extra laps were the ultimate punishment and sure to ruin my whole day.

And then something changed. A friend of mine did the Disneyland Half Marathon. The medal was pretty and it was Disney so I WANTED IT (even if it meant running). My husband and I signed up for the 2014 Disneyland 10k because I wasn't about to jump straight into 13.1 miles. To prepare for the 10k, we did a few 5ks leading up to it. Our first 5k was brutal. It was hot and I got a stitch in my side less than a mile in. But we pushed on.

The LA Galazy 5k, Our first race!

My training runs went from 1 mile to 1.5 to 2 and beyond. When we crossed the finish line of the Disneyland 10k (exhausted but smiling), I was officially hooked. I wanted to run more, farther. I saw people with Dumbo Double Dare challenge bibs (10k Saturday and Half Marathon Sunday) and thought "If they can do it, I can do it". The next day I signed up for the Pixie Dust Challenge to do the 10k and Half Marathon at Disneyland the following May, which was to be my first half marathon.

Ultimately, I ended up running my first half just two months later because I got impatient, and I've done six more since then, along with dozens of other 5ks and 10ks. Derek and I ever did a 10k in England on our honeymoon (nothing says romance like running 6 miles in sub-freezing temperatures, right?)

The freezing weather at the Wimbledon 10k was a new challenge for these Californians

Running still isn't easy, and there are days when I wake up at 5am seriously questioning my sanity for voluntarily running 20 miles when I could be, you know, doing anything but that.  But the feeling of accomplishment that I get from finishing a race is unmatched by anything else. I've learned to roll with the hard days and enjoy the early mornings and solitary long runs.

This year I'm continuing to push myself. I want to run more and improve my times. I'm also jumping outside my comfort zone to not only complete my first full marathon (which I swore I would never do), but also participate in my first overnight relay race, the So.Cal Ragnar. I also plan on revisiting some races that I did last year, and hoping setting some new personal records!