Why I run...

Happy Tuesday!
Yesterday I showed you a lovely picture of me...all covered in mud.
It was kind a really huge deal for me. Wanna know why?
Yep....I'm about to tell you why...brace yourself!!!

So...I danced when I was little. I danced and I loved it.
I had the best teachers. I started with tap...then I quit and moved
to ballet...there was one little problem. My knees were KILLING me!
So then I quit. No good. I was sad. They just kept hurting...nothing really
helped. Doc said I would grow out of it. I didn't...I started swimming and that wasn't
too bad. But still there was no running. Because...ouch! All the time!
I just figured I wasn't made for running...it became my mantra...
"you're not a runner...you're not a runner"

I don't know what changed, but one day I decided I wasn't
going to let my body tell me what my limitations were anymore.
So I started running...on our treadmill. I think I started the year
after Shane was born. He will be eight this year. I wouldn't
even run outside...I had visions of Phoebe from friends
running through Central Park...arms waving wildly...gulp!
Last year a great group of gals asked if I would like to join them...
They ran in the wee hours of the morning...when its dark, and nobody can really see you!
I was ridiculous. Could barely make it 100 feet! I would get so frustrated.
When oh when would I be able to run a mile???
One day it finally just clicked. I'm still super slow. But I can do it! Yay!
So thats why I was so nervous about the run. I really didn't want to fail.
Also..my sweet little girl was there watching me. I think that was even more scary.
I really wanted to impress her. I know...I'm ridiculous. She though it was
so funny that I was gonna be tromping through the mud...rolling around in the mud.
Fully submerged in muddy, dirty, nastiness. She was literally dancing around the house
that morning! She used my phone to video me...and I loved seeing her there on the sidelines:)
"Mom, that was awesome!" followed by "Thank you SO much for letting me watch you!"
Yeah. It was pretty much epic. My mommy heart was full...super, super full!

On the running front...we are currently doing interval training...hopefully
I will improve my speed. (crossing fingers) Now I am stalking around
the web...looking for new runs to run. I really can't wait. Really!

And then there is the mommy aside of things...it seems that I have regained my
coolness factor in my daughter's eyes...for now.