And the Journey Begins Anew

Today was the third of my long runs, 5 miles to be exact. As I turned the corner and saw the killer hill, the bane to my running existence and the challenge that I long to overcome, my mind went back to my ideas of starting a blog to chronicle my journey. The killer hill, mind you, is a 100 ft climb in the short distance of 1.5 TENTHS of a mile, no small feat. I am not an experienced runner. While others were keeping themselves in shape, I was raising four kids and making plenty of excuses. This hill is the metaphor to my life's challenges.

I am on week 3 of my half-marathon training. I am 48 years old (which I don't admit to just anyone because it sounds so... old). I started running when I was 45. Oh, I played at running when I was young. My high school stint on the track team consisted of me running the mile, but slowing down to talk one of my teammates through a tough time, then watching her turn around and beat me. I kind of gave up after that, thinking that I'm not really the competitive type. I jogged for pleasure, rode my bike, and walked plenty, but most of my life has been pretty inactive.

When I was 40, I got the wake-up call I was not anticipating. A routine mammogram detected something abnormal and I was called back. A second abnormal reading led to a biopsy, which led to many things and many feelings, including a lumpectomy, radiation, a bilateral mastectomy, and a sense of my own mortality. To say my life changed at forty is a complete understatement. To say that it began at forty is a given. I was lucky. My tumor was small, 4mm. At this writing I am in good health and have been kicked out of the cancer treatment program due to not needing their services. (Ladies, be proactive with your health.)

With my new reduced breast size, I figured it was a good time to start running again. After all, getting all of that weight off top had to be good for something. I am a big fan of "The Biggest Loser," and had watched them run a race. I thought, if they can do it, why can't I? So I ran. Well, I ran/walked. Ninety seconds running, ninety seconds walking, all counted in my head. I ran one day, two days, three days, but I seemed to be slowing down and getting very sore. After about 6 days of doing this daily I hobbled home in tears, barely able to walk. My sister suggested the Couch to 5K program and offered to be my running buddy. We live about 2 hours apart, so we couldn't run together, but we could provide each other with support and encouragement through texting, Facebook, and phone calls. We set a goal, to run a 5K by August so she could tell her teacher support team about her accomplishment. She started, but I had to wait a week and let my shinsplints heal.

We walked and we ran. At first I was not able to run one lap around the track. As we progressed, we congratulated each other on our first lap, our first mile, our first 25 minute non-stop run. The day of the 5K was growing closer, and I was getting nervous. This was difficult, to say the least. Each new hurdle I crossed just brought another into view. There would be bridges, which meant running uphill. I was having a hard enough time running on a flat surface. What if I couldn't do it? I wasn't about to let myself walk any of this 5K. (Okay, if you are a newbie, I give you my permission to walk, but try not to.) I had never raced before. A 5K seemed so... long.

The day finally arrived. The gun went off, and the racers were off, passing me as we went up and around the on-ramp to the bridge. I kept telling myself to take it slowly, but there is something about running in a herd of people that makes that advice really hard to listen to. At least the hill was at the start. It would be flat for the rest of the race. I happened to know that the other bridge had a pedestrian crossing at the level of the promenade. I had good music on my playlist and I was getting into the groove. I would pick a person in front of me to keep up with and maybe even pass. Things were going fine until I got to that other bridge. Instead of routing us across the footpath, we were directed up a switchback handicap access to the main bridge. Ugh. I hadn't anticipated this, and I think I told one of the directors that I thought it was mean of them to do this to us. Of course he just smiled; he wasn't the one running. I made it over the bridge when Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now" came on my playlist. I had strategically placed it at the point I knew I'd need it most, fueling the last stage of my run. I ran on, ignoring the man who kept running past me, then walking as I passed him, then running past me, etc. I saw the finish line. Uphill? Really? I poured on the juice and tried for a good finish. How was the race? Exhilarating. Exciting. Fun. Red faced and sweaty, we posed for finish line pictures, basking in the glory of our accomplishment. There's nothing like meeting a challenge head-on and showing yourself that you have what it takes to beat it.

We went on to run the Octoberfest 5K. My daughter did the 10K. I thought, wow, I'll never do that. I have since run 2 10Ks. My daughter ran a very challenging half-marathon. I thought, wow, I sure admire her. I could never run one. Which brings me to today, my 5 mile run, and my challenge hill. The challenges we face are nothing compared to our determination, yet determination alone is not enough. Support, encouragement, and planning are all necessary ingredients. Yet so often it is only our minds holding us back from what we most want to accomplish. As I continue this journey, I wonder where it will lead. As I look up the hill, I can't plan on reaching the top in one try, but if I plug away at it once a week or so, going a little further each time, one of these days I'm going to make it to the top.

Peace, and keep running.

Run for the River 5K  Fun Run (Yay! I did it!) 8/10
Oktoberfest 5K (hill!) 9/10
Race for the Cure 5K 10/10
Strawberry Run 5K (WARM!!) 6/11
Summer Solstice 5K 6/11
Smith Rock Summer Classic 10K (Whew! Exhausting!) 7/11
Race for the Cure 5K 10/11
Turkey Trot 5K (COLD!!) 11/11
Cinco de Mayo 5/12
Sunriver Race for the Cause 5K 9/12
Scrubs Run 10K 9/12
Race for the Cure 5K 10/12