In The Beginning..........

So here we are approximately 11 weeks after I decided to start running (AGAIN)! This is my third, that's right people, THIRD attempt at becoming a runner. I have always been an athlete, played college softball as a matter of fact! But two kids and 10 years at a desk have done me zero favors when it comes to staying in shape. I do understand that round is a shape, but that's not exaclty what I'm striving for here.

Becoming a runner has taunted me for 3 years now. I have always known the health benefits of running, but I didn't really want to DO it until I met someone at work who was a marathon runner (he just recently did the Pikes Peak marathon.......and yes, he's CRAZY). This intrigued me and I decided in 2010 to download the 'Couch to 5k' app for my phone and try it out. This would be my first failed attempt at becoming a runner. Six weeks into the nine week program I could barely walk. My left knee hurt so bad during and after running that I decided it just wasn't worth the misery, so I quit. Did I feel guilty? Yes! Did I feel guilty enough to continue running? No!

The second failed attempt came in 2011, when once again I started the 'Couch to 5k' program but never completed it. I reached Week 8 this time around, but on December 23rd, my world was turned upside down. I completed week 7 that evening after dinner, came home, took a shower, and went to bed. Around midnight I got a text message from my sister saying that she and my parents were on the front porch and that I needed to come open the door. You see, my Mom had been having pain in her torso for several weeks. She went to the doctor in early December and they did a CBC, which showed elevated liver enzymes. The doctor suspected that it might be gallstones, so they did an ultrasound of the area. They told her the ultrasound was "inconclusive" and that she would need to have a CT scan. This brings us to Friday, December 23rd, 2011 - the day of the CT scan. The scan was in the late afternoon (I can't recall exacty what time), and at that point the worst part of the whole ordeal was thinking "I can't believe my Mom might need surgery to remove gallstones on Christmas Eve"! It's funny looking back now that all I was worried about was surgery around Christmas time.......if only! My husband had gotten out of bed to let my sister and parents into the house while I grabbed a robe out of the closet. When I went into the living room, my Mom got off the couch and walked over to me. She calmly looked me in the face and said "I have cancer". I knew immediately after my sister texted me that I would be hearing those words. In one instant my world was forever changed. My Mom was only 48 years old at the time. We are 18 years apart and she was my best friend. I was absolutely frozen in that spot and could not find words. Once I rebounded enough to ask a few questions, I found out that it was pancreatic cancer, one of the most deadly of them all with only a 5% survival rate. A few days later we found out it was stage 4, even worse news. Needless to say the next few months were filled with more scans, doctors’ appointments, chemo treatments, hospital stays, and everything else that goes along with cancer. On March 6, 2012, my Mom turned 49 years old. On March 9, 2012, my Mom passed away. Although I had 77 days to come to terms with the fact that I was going to lose my Mom very soon to this disease, nothing can prepare you for that moment. Yes, I was glad she was no longer in pain. But I want my Mom back! Everytime I looked at my boys (who were 5 years and 18 months old at the time), I just got angry that they were going to have to grow up without their Nana, who had been a very large part of their lives before she got sick. Anyway, I digress.........

So I didn't run for a very long time. It obviously took me some time to come to terms with my Mom's death. So fast forward more than a year and 40 pounds later to July 7, 2013. For some reason, I decided that I want to run a half marathon. I'm not sure why, I just want to prove to myself that I can do it. I started running again 11 weeks ago, on July 7th. Who in their right mind decides to start a half marathon training program in the middle of summer?!?!?! Seriously!

I started out again with the 'Couch to 5k', but this time it was an 8 week program that builds you up to running 30 minutes without stopping on the last day. I did this with an average pace of 16'04" and a total distance of 2.62 miles. Not quite a 5k, but I ran for 30 minutes without stopping. My speed is definitely not anything to write home about, but I ran for 30 minutes without stopping. And I lived through it! I have yet to run 30 minutes without stopping since that day. During week 9, I started a 12 week half marathon program. For this 12 weeks I decided that I would start with running for 15 minutes and walking for 2 minutes, then build from there. I am currently in week 11, although I did skip two runs last week because I just flat out didn't feel like it. I am okay with this, but I paid for it on Tuesday.

Long intro, but good background. More to come...................