Since you've seen me..

Since you've seen me, I've still be struggling to find my motivation.  I was determined to get things moving again, but life keeps striking.  January included two (3 day) trips to Albuquerque.  The first time was to take my Mama back to the airport after a visit over Christmas.  The second was to take my daughter to a doctor appointment. (Bad weather kept us there longer). Then the flu hit--and it hit me hard. We have also had more snow than usual this year.  Today I was supposed to run a 10K but it was cancelled due to snow and ice.

But not all is lost....

Since you've seen me, I ran my first trail run. It was a 5K cross country run. I even medalled. I got third place in the women's division.  In the interest of full disclosure--there were only three women in the race. And the other two beat my time considerably.  But I finished!!

 

Since you've seen me I ran my first color run. We actually crashed it. (shhh).  I didn't get registered ahead of time, and there was no on-site registration. So we just ran/walked anyway.  My beautiful daughter Heather loved it! We are planning to do another color run next month, and my younger son is joining us.

  

 

Since you've seen me, I ran I a 10K.  That's right. 6.2 miles.  Hilly miles at that!  (My FitBit gave me 13 flights of stairs!) It was a small race--a community service project for a high school homeschooler. I really doubted whether I could do it. I had never run more than 4 miles at one time. And never on hills. And we started before the sun even came up.

The organizer gave me "permission" to stop at the halfway point and call it a 5K.  I was debating, but about 1/4 mile before the turn around, Mandisa sang in my headphones, 

You're an overcomer
Stay in the fight ‘til the final round
You're not going under
‘Cause God is holding you right now
You might be down for a moment
Feeling like it's hopeless
That's when He reminds You
That you're an overcomer
You're an overcomer
Lyrics taken from <a href="http://www.elyrics.net/read/m/mandisa-lyrics/overcomer-lyrics.html" rel="nofollow">this page</a>

As I reached the turn around point, I saw at least two runners nearing the finish line.  I kept running. I was afraid to walk because I thought I might fall down if I stopped.  As I got closer to the end, Mandisa again sang in my ear:

The pain ain't gonna last forever
And things can only get better
Believe me, this is gonna make you stronger
Gonna make you stronger, stronger, stronger
Believe me, this is gonna make you
Read more at http://www.songlyrics.com/mandisa/stronger-lyrics/#1WgBOO5hrwUu1RtY.99

As I approached the final 1/4 mile, I noticed the other runners heading my way.  The walked up and then ran home with me.  That was so encouraging.  My final time was 1 hour and 45 minutes.  Some of those runners had waited over an hour to finish with me.

Since you've seen me, I got new shoes.  In the two years since I started running, I have worn out three pairs of Brooks. I wear them every day (helps with the plantar fascitis). See the white spots on my black shoe? Those are my socks poking through!

Since you've seen me, I haven't lost any more weight---BUT, I have maintained my loss. Considering the year that I had--I'm okay with that.  I'll sign off with the shirt my sister sent me.