And this Mom keeps runnin', runnin', & runnin', runnin'

Some of you may be aware that over the past year I have become a runner.  People who have known me for a long time may find this hard to believe because I was not all that athletic for the first 22 yrs. of my life.  Anyway, I would still not consider myself to be an "athlete" because I feel that an athlete is someone whom participates in sports that involve balls in some way, and I still duck and cover when anything is thrown at me instead of trying to catch it.  However, I really do like running.  I think my favorite part about running is that I am able to push myself to do things I never thought were possible.  Forever, I have thought of myself as the awkward adolescent girl I was in middle school, and running has really taken that feeling away from me.  Running has made me realize that I am capable of anything I put my mind to, and that I am an important person with some pretty great ideas and attributes.  

I began running last year when my kids were 5 months old.  I started doing it as a way to get back into working out and start shedding my baby weight.  I did that Couch to 5k Plan, and I ran my first 5k at the end of October 2011.  In the next 7 months I ran five more 5k's and one 8k.  All this running really helped me start to feel like me again, but more of a new and improved me.  I took a break over the summer, but at the end of August I put back on the running shoes to train for my first 10k.  Now, I plan to run a 12k in February, a 15k in March, and half marathon in April.  My training for my half marathon begins this week, and I plan to keep you all posted on my training as it progresses.  

I know the training process will be tough at times, but I think writing about it every now and then will help me out.  I just need to remember that running makes me feel like a lean, mean, fighting Mama!  I can't wait to share my journey with you (and I hope that my running posts don't bore the socks off of you).

To wrap up this post, here's a pic for your viewing pleasure.  It's from my second 5k.  I did it with Ryan and the twinners in November 2011.

Now, here's to many more!