3M Nostalgia

Yesterday was the 3M Half Marathon here in Austin.  The 3M has a special place in my heart. In 2008, it was the first half marathon I had ever done and BFF ran it with me. I remember it like it was yesterday. The morning was very cold so I overdressed in layers. Then in true Texas fashion, the temperature rose and I got hot during the race and eventually I took off my fleece and shirt and tied them around my waist. I took off my gloves and hat (those ended up on the road somewhere).

Until this race, my longest run had been 9 miles with some killer hills (I later found out that people training for the Boston Marathon often used the Rain Creek Parkway/Floral Park Drive route I did weekly to prepare for that race. I was in good company). And call me masochistic, but I loved hills. BFF dreaded the training runs when she saw me turning onto one of these streets.  She would grumble and grunt as we ran the hills but she stuck with me like a trooper. I felt like we were well prepared for the race. The only thing we weren't prepared for was the weather. Until that weekend, our training had been done in cool weather. BFF and I took full advantage of water stops along the way and paced ourselves well.

The final three miles were the most challenging. BFF's bad knee was screaming violently at her so we slowed our pace to accommodate it. She wanted me to go ahead but I didn't. We made the commitment to do the race together and I was gonna stick to it. I started cracking jokes, singing "Eye of the Tiger" and quoting cheesy lines from movies to get her mind off of the pain. One of our favorites was from the movie "The Replacements":

Shane Falco: I wish I could say something classy and inspirational, but that just wouldn't be our style.

[pause while everybody is in the huddle]

Shane Falco: Pain heals. Chicks (we said GUYS) dig scars. Glory... lasts forever.

We laughed our way through the last miles of the race. Two hours, ten minutes and twenty-four seconds after we started the race, we crossed the finish line together. BFF apologized for our finish time (we trained to finish in 1:45) but I poo-pooed that. We got through it and it was even better because we did it together. I could have gone ahead of her and finished in under two hours as planned but it wouldn't have meant as much.  

The lesson I learned was that no matter how prepared we think we are for the big race, anything can happen along the route. But the best way to get through it is with laughter, fun and being surrounded by the people that matter most to us.  Those things make any victory that much sweeter.

Happy Trails!

Valeka

Progress

Our ambition should be to rule ourselves, the true kingdom for each one of us; and true progress is to know more, and be more, and to do more.  - Oscar Wilde

Eventually, after we spend enough time eating and working out like we should, we start to see some small but encouraging signs of progress - we don't get winded walking to the mailbox, it's easier to bend to tie our shoes, our pants are looser. This should be exciting for us so why do we find ourselves thinking that what we have done isn't good enough? Too often we shrug our shoulders in dismissal at the things we have done because we don’t think they are so great. We dwell on the fact that even though we have lost 3 pounds, we still have 47 more pounds to lose to meet our goal. We wait for others to be our champions and give validity to our actions when we should do that for ourselves. We become our own worst enemy and harshest critic. I'm guilty of this. I find it very hard to accept praise or compliments from others. I find it difficult to give MYSELF kudos for my achievements and victories so I find it hard to believe that anyone else would do otherwise but - no more. I promised to be kinder to myself and that is a promise I intend to keep. There is no reason why we shouldn't pat ourselves on the back if we just walked 2 miles for the first time or if the lettering on the front of our favorite t-shirt isn't stretched out anymore - those are big deals! Enjoy the feeling!! Celebrate it!!

I think back to all of the races I have done and the praise I received for doing them. The only person that didn't praise me was ME. All I could think of was that I wasn't fast enough, my strides were too choppy and that I got passed up by a lot of people. Even though only a few short months earlier I wasn’t able to run far, I didn't allow myself to enjoy my victories (and in my mind, finishing a race IS a victory). I couldn't give myself credit for the remarkable progress I had made and I found it unfathomable that anyone else would find what I had done to be impressive. That is now in the past. That's why I post my daily mileage for all the world to see. I am proud of the miles I am racking up no matter how small they may be because each of the miles represents progress - progress of action and progress of thought. All of the miles are significant because they are miles that are getting me closer to my ultimate goal of running a 50-mile race (yep, I'm a bit of a masochist). Each mile represents my choice to not sit around and be unhealthy. Each mile symbolizes my decision to do something rather than nothing. Each mile is a step in the right direction and we are all about moving forward, right?

So this week, say a big “hell yeah” when you do something you didn’t think you could do. Smile and accept praise or compliments that are given to you and know that you are worthy of the accolades you receive. But most importantly, believe in yourself.  Be proud of yourself and your decision to stay on the path to a healthier you. Now, lace up your shoes and get out there to show the world what amazing things you can do.

Happy Trails,
Valeka