And what is that exactly?
Honestly, I don't really know. I started running about five years ago because I became unhealthy and overweight. My husband actually brought it up to me. I tell the story and everyone is shocked that he would approach his wife about her weight. But honestly, it needed to happen. I was unhappy and fat and sad a lot of the time. He started running with me and I struggled to run to the stop sign and back. He is in better shape that I am so I am sure it was laughable watching him literally walk behind me as I tried to 'run' to the stop sign and back.
About two years ago I witnessed my amazing sister and best friend of thirty-years complete a half Ironman. It was am amazing feat that I was proud to witness. I felt tears well up in my eyes when they came down the chute towards the finish line and something clicked in me. I didn't need to be running my miniscule distances that I had been in an attempt to call myself a 'runner'. See I had convinced myself that running 1.6 miles three days a week made me a 'runner'. Seeing them complete this half Iron woke me up a bit. So I literally took off.
My husband had tried to motivate me by telling me he'd take me out for a 'special dinner' if I could run to the gas station and back. A whopping two miles in total. I struggled and fought and cried and I couldn't make. Until after the half Iron. My first run after that was three miles and since then I've just kept going.
So in the past two years since I kicked up my running I've completed six 5Ks, one 5 miler, four 10Ks, one 15K, two half marathons, two sprint triathlons, and completed the swim portion of a half Iron relay.
So, in a nut shell, I am an overly stressed teacher with summers off (but honestly, we rarely take them 'off'), I am proudly Canadian but currently live in the great state of Georgia with my overly honest husband (no, no kids - long story for another blog), and I'm trying to figure out what's next in my life. Here is a picture of me finding the world hilarious:
Oh, and the title of this blog? "Splash" - for the swim of a triathlon. I've been swimming for thirty years and completed the 1.2 miles of the half Iron swim in 29:47 (a accomplishment that I am SO proud of and even have a poster with my time on it in my classroom). "Flash" - for the speeds you can, and should, get up to on the bike portion. I've only just started biking recently but I love the freedom it provides. "Dash" - for the run obviously. I'm a terribly slow runner but I have to keep telling myself that a 6 min/mile or a 16 min/mile - I still ran a mile.
No comments:
Post a Comment