About two years ago, I decided to take up running. I thought it would be something I could do to get in shape that wouldn’t cost too much money. After all, I had a driveway I could run on. No special equipment required.
I didn’t realize that I would fall in love with it! Running has helped my mind stay sharp and my emotions remain more in check. I think it is amazing. This is funny coming from someone who avoided running like the plague in high school.
This fall, my husband and I signed up for two 5Ks. I was hoping that my times would improve from last season, but to be honest, I hadn’t run very many fast miles. While I like running, I don’t particularly enjoy running fast!
And then we caught COVID in September. This really threw a wrench in my running schedule. It wasn’t a bad case, but I didn’t run much at all for a couple of weeks, and then didn’t feel as strong after I was better.
October rolled around, and I decided to try my very best at my first fall 2023 5K. I was really shooting for a time under 28 minutes. I had run a 26:00 5K in the spring, but that one was downhill. Literally running down a mountain will do wonders for your time, ha!
I was disappointed with my October time of 28:42 for just a little while, but then I remembered that I tried my best and that this was just for fun. I ended up placing second in my age category.
In November we ran another 5K, and two of my children ran a Junior Marathon at the same event. This time, I decided to not give it my all, and kept up a more comfortable pace. I ran it in 29:29, and placed third in my age category. I wasn’t expecting this at all and it was a pleasant surprise!
My husband ran it in 25:17. He is so close to breaking 25 minutes!
My girls had a fabulous time, too!
Next up is a half marathon in December. I decided I wanted to try to participate in one using the Galloway Run-Walk-Run method. I think this will be a great way for me to go longer distances without my knees giving me trouble. We shall see how it goes!
I would love to encourage you to find an exercise you love, and to get involved! I used to think that spending time exercising was selfish. Not anymore! I realize that it is much better for my children to have a healthy and fit mama than one who is sluggish. I feel so much better than I did two years ago in every way, physically speaking. I’m so glad I gave it a shot while encouraging my children to get involved, too.
My goal this fall and winter is to stay consistent and hopefully get in more of those fast miles that I don’t like too much. I also would love to add in some leg exercises to help with my knees. I had several knee injuries as a child/teen, and they catch up with me if I run too long.
I will try to let you know how the half marathon goes!
Thank you so much for stopping by today, friends. I hope your day is wonderful!