Almost 3 weeks ago I said I was going to make my next post about running, and I kind of did, but not the way I wanted to. So, here we are now.
As I’ve said in the past, I started running about 5 years ago. It was initially to burn off that dreaded baby weight that decided to linger around even the the baby was now walking and talking and becoming his own person. I remember thinking, “We used to run a mile in gym class, it wasn’t that hard”. So off I went. That first proverbial step. And a couple thousand steps later I thought I was going to die.
I use a running app to keep track of mileage, time, etc. I still go back every once in a while and look at that first mile on October 4, 2012. The longest 12 minutes and 32 seconds of my life. Now, don’t get me wrong, a 12 minute mile is nothing to be ashamed of! But for me personally, I felt that I could do better. And I did, and I have. But there have been many ups and downs.
I had a PR (personal record) back in March of this year during a half marathon. I trained like crazy, and saw the results. Race day was 38 degrees and rainy and I thought I might get frostbite. And then I had a stomach issue around mile 5 or 6. But I still managed to finish in my goal time. I was proud of myself. I had obtained some personal/mental/physical goal that I had set for myself.
(not me)
My next half marathon was set for about 6 months later. I figured I could do as well, or better, if I trained well. But, life gets in the way, and that didn’t happen. I barely trained at all, honestly. The longest run I had was 8 miles. A half marathon is over 13. I was not prepared physically at all. And it was an unusually hot, humid, October day. About half way through I realized that my goal at this point was to just finish the race, and I did.
The roller coaster that is my running ‘career’ has included injuries, lack of motivation, a bout or two of depression, relocation, and many other deterrents. But I’ve done it. I’m not the fastest, and I’m not a marathoner. But, I’ve accomplished more than I thought I could. I can now run more than 1 mile at a time, and usually faster than a 12 minute pace. If nothing else, it’s progress.
And to me, that’s all that life is. Progress. Learn. Improve. Learn some more. The definition of progress is: forward or onward movement. Just keep going. Whatever it is, running, jobs, kids, school. There’s something that drives everyone. Find that thing and keep going.
Got Faith? 