The Half Experience

I'm horrible at getting race recaps up.  But truth be told, there's so much more that you'd get out of it by finding and creating your own experience. I used to think that 5Ks were so long!  Seriously, in high school, 5Ks we marathons in my ignorant mind!  If you asked me, my friend who ran on the cross country team WERE running across the country!  I admired their endurance!  Come to find out, they were 3.1 miles.  I 2009, I did my first 3.1 miles with little to no training.  Notice I said "did" as in completed. I did not run. I tried to but I only made it about 0.25 miles before I "pooped out" and started to walk. But I finished and that's what mattered to me! I started my journey with putting on e foot in front of the other and that's how I progressed.

 I did more 5Ks for another 3 years. They were fun and I was finally able to run them from start to finish!  Until.....until my then classmate and now friend encouraged me and flat out told me I was able to push myself to go further. I thought about what she had told me for a bit, but not long. Because within a month I was registering for my first half marathon.  (For more on this race see my post from August 2012)

Fast forward to now...I've already completed one half marathon this year (Walt Disney World) and I have three more lined up for this year!  How'd I get from none to four in one year?!  T answer that question for you and I, it's simple....I got out of my own way, learned to love myself, and stopped saying "I can't"!  Those three aspects have been crucial in my healthy lifestyle transformation. My original goal of going out and shedding weight turned into a much deeper and important journey and this is the year I will begin to pay it forward my sharing my journey and helping others find their own path.

So I opt to not half recap for my first event this year and encourage you to go out and find your own "first half" it's much more meaningful than you sitting here reading about mine.   Completing events like these fulfills our need for recognition, often not from other but from ourselves. It's reinforcement and encouragement that WE CAN do it and will moving forward!  So get out there and find something fun that will create your own Half Experience!  Come back and comment, I'd love to hear about it!