On Running...

Today my sister-in-law, Melissa, and I ran the annual Vancouver SunRun 10K run. What an experience! Just to give some sense of the vastness of this race, it is the second largest 10K race, IN THE WORLD!! I have never in my life been part of such a massive group of people all in the same place at the same time.

The day started very early as I rushed around the house to get my hubby to work, and then myself and the kidlets out the door, and into the van by 6am to go and pick up Auntie Lissie (as we affectionately call her!). We made it in record time down to my Dad's, dropped the babies off, and were back on the road by 6:30. By the time we got to the Sky train, and rode to downtown Vancouver, it was barely 8am. We waited with nervous excitement, and bated breaths until the time that we needed to go and join the huge throngs of people in our "wave".

We heard, more than saw, the first wave of runners start the race at 9am and finally 9:30ish rolled around, and it was time for us to start.

Let me just say how very difficult it is to maneuver amongst so many people. I really had no idea how challenging it would be-and frankly how frustrating.

Now if you know anything about me, you'll know that a competitive spirit is part of my makeup, so for me, just running the race for the sake of fun and running was not going to cut it. My last 10K race, I completed it in 1hour, 1 minute, 11 seconds, so that was my goal; I wanted to beat that time. Unfortunately, it was just so hard to push through  the people, and the magnanimous amounts of walking people who WOULD NOT MOVE OUT OF THE WAY, that we finished the race in 1hour, 3 minutes. Not bad, not bad at all!

The cool thing is, I could have kept running, I was sore, but not particularly tired, which I decided was the best result of all. It proved to me that all the working out and training I have done has paid off.

Melissa and I are setting our sights on a Half Marathon on July 24th in Fort Langley. It's a big goal; it's a big jump from 10K to a Half Marathon. It's true, but somewhere along this journey, I have come to love running. I settle into it, and feel so free, so light, so strong.

I have always been athletic, and sports oriented, and this, especially after two babies, has allowed me to reclaim my body in a way that is just mine. And it feels wonderful.

As I near my 30th birthday, YIKES, I feel stronger and more capable physically than I have in a very long time! I feel more capable of mothering my children in excellence, and in being the kind of wife and love to my husband that I've always hoped to be.

This running thing, go ahead ladies, give it whirl. You won't be sorry!