Tuesday, October 22, 2013

The very beginning -- a very good place to start

Once upon a time I could run.  I was never fast, but I could run.  When I was 26, my knees made me stop.  Two knee surgeries and four kids later, I'd completely given up on myself being athletic.  When my husband started running again, seeing his joy made me want to reclaim mine.  So I walk.  My first mile was on a treadmill and took me 25 minutes.  I've tentatively run a bit, but mostly I walk.  I've even done some races.



Total goofball, I know.  The last 5k I'd done was eight years earlier, so I was more than a bit thrilled when the volunteers held up the tape for me.  That race had a women's tech tank top as the race shirt.  Race shirts have come a long, long way since I last earned one.  I like it so much that I wear that tank every single week.  It got me looking around at what else might be out there.  I found a women's half marathon in December with a generous course limit and set my eyes on the prize.  Not only does the RunGirl 13.1 have a tank top, it also has a medal *and* a necklace.  The only way to get them is to cross the finish line.  After finishing my nine mile walk this weekend at a 14 min/mi pace and having enough energy left to dance in the driveway, I know I am strong enough to get my next tank top.

So why stop at one more tank top?

To celebrate giving myself a second chance at being a recreational athlete, I'm going to do 13 half marathons in 13 months.  I'm still planning and registering, but I've got some women's races, some insanely hot races, an out-of-state race, and even a trail race.  They all have at least a 3.5 hour course limit, so I should be able to finish.  My incredibly supportive husband is completely on board with my wackiness.  He's an ultrarunner now, so pretty much anything sounds reasonable compared with what he's doing.  He'll be taking our very enthusiastic cheering section to these 13 finish lines, so he's a brave man.

I'm sure I'll come across challenges I can't begin to imagine, but I'm ready to take them on.  13 x 13.1 is going to be great.

3 comments:

  1. Not quite yet an ultrarunners. Perhaps after next weeks +45 km training run. You should also mention that one of the first activities we did when we first met was a 10 km run. We're coming full circle - with more mile and less sleep.

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  2. I am super proud of you Brynne! You rock!

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