Thursday, July 1, 2010

Running the race...

I am trying to run the race, as the Bible talks about. Sometimes I have good days, and some days are not so great. But the title of this blog entry has another meaning. I'm considering...and I am actually pretty motivated...to train for a race! I have never run a race before. Never even really thought it was possible to do it. You see, I've never been much of a runner. I was a "big kid" growing up, and even have some not-so-great memories of bullies at school picking on me because I was a big girl and pretty much being last when we had to run laps in PE. Not fond memories. Thankfully, the Lord has been good to me and helped me to forgive those girls and move on. Fast forward through the years. I had times when I would diet and lose weight and felt really good. I played softball and tennis and have always enjoyed team sports. When I was in Thailand, I joined a gym, lost weight that I had gained and started running on the treadmill. At first I could only do a few minutes, then I built up to actually being able to run for 10 minutes. I started getting stronger, leaner, and felt really good about this accomplishment. I kept it up after I returned home. After Joe and I got married, the pounds slowly began creeping up again. Then I got preggo with little Sophie. On came 50...yes, 50...pounds! Shortly after having her I did a diet that allowed me to lose about 30 lbs in 3 mos. It was a grueling 3 mos. But I was glad to get the weight off. Then comes baby number 2. Another...almost exactly...50 lbs. I tried not to gain that much. It just seemed like my body said, "ok, that's what we're supposed to do." So now I've lost about 28 lbs and working towards my goal of losing this baby weight. It's a slow process. I've started playing church softball, as of this week. Let's just say the legs are feeling the burn! But having to run the bases and feeling how weak my body is has motivated me to want to train and try to start running. I want a goal to work towards. A race would be a huge accomplishment for me. So my good friend is helping me to train and we might be able to do a race together in the spring. We're taking it slow since I am a beginner. I'm excited and hopeful. We're training for a 5K. That's huge for me! Please pray for me as I start on this endeavor.
God bless!

4 comments:

Jessica said...

that's so exciting! you can totally do it..I look forward to seeing/hearing how the progress goes. I pray the Lord would give you the strength and endurance to meet your goal!

The Great Adventure said...

Thanks so much, Jessica! That means a lot!

Elizabeth said...

Wish I could run with you...I love running! Its always been my "therapy" and a great way to keep your heart healthy! My running routine is not very consistent these days, but one thing I do that helps a lot is to do a run/walk. It allows you to keep your heart rate in your target zone without overworking yourself. And since you're not overworking yourself, you will be able to go a longer distance. You can read more about it by searching Jeff Galloway (sp?), he's the running guy who has made it popular.

The Great Adventure said...

I wish you could run with me, too, Elizabeth! I found the Jeff Galloway site and that's exactly what I'm going to try and do. That's what I'll have to do! I'm a little sore in the heel and knee, so I've got to take it slow. I'm aiming for a race next spring. I think Leslie Burch and I are going to try and do it together since they'll be here on furlough. That's the goal anyway. We'll see...I'm excited, though! : ) Thanks for the encouragement!