I fucking did it, I completed my very first half marathon and I feel like a fucking badass! After 15 weeks of training and being consistent with all of the things. The day finally came where I had to put all that training to good work. I felt sick as a dog on Friday & I actually had an anxiety attack the night beforehand, even with all the training. It wasn’t easy, but I had a lot of fun and I would definitely do it again. I didn’t hit a wall and on mile 12 which was awesome considering I usually hit my wall around mile 7. I was so happy to see my time under the 3 hour mark too!!!
I haven’t always been a runner, far from it actually. I never really had the desire to run, before I came across the Inspirational people out November Project.
So, I wanted to get out some of my back story, because I really owe my love for running and working out to November Project. You all make getting out of bed early so worth it! Here’s my story:
I’ve always envied those who I’ve seen out running. You see, I’ve always struggled with running. I was the kid that would do everything to get out of running in gym class in high school. Every time I ran I felt like my lungs were on fire and it was never an enjoyable experience for me.
A few years ago I tried running again, as a way to combat weight loss. I’d drive down the boardwalk, at sunrise and do my best to get across the entire boardwalk. The longest I could run without stopping was maybe about a block. I even tried to do some fun runs. The first 5K I did was the Color Me Rad and I had fun but still struggled. I think I finished in just under an hour.
Two years ago I was turning 35, I was overweight and unhappy with myself. So I started my weight-loss journey. This time I decided I wasn’t going to give up. I sought help in various different ways. For about 7 years, I convinced myself that I would never get past the plateau that I would seemingly always hit. After finally pushing past all my own personal reasons why I couldn’t hit my goal I finally achieved it. It wasn’t easy, especially since I was still at the gym working out alone every day. I remember wishing some sort of free workout group existed, because I didn’t know that it was already a thing.
About a month or so after hitting my weight loss goal I found November Project. I was elated, because I sure as hell didn’t want to workout alone anymore. And this was only after eight months-ish of being in the gym. After making some friends that October decided to sign up for my first 10K. Mainly because my friends were going. I told myself it’ll be a fun run. However, I never expected to actually ever really enjoy running outside of races.
Seeing all these badass women (and men) running ridiculous amounts of miles for a banana has inspired me to run. I’ve slowly gotten more accustomed to running and actually started to enjoy it more. It’s become a great way to escape and is a wonderful outlet for all the things. Because it turns out I need a lot of focus to run, so it really helps clear my brain and stay focused on not dying/falling.
I may not run fast, in fact, I might run about as fast as a turtle trudging through peanut butter (Turtle Power!!!) and it’s not always amazing or enjoyable, but I Fucking run. I get out there I do my best every time and that’s what really matters. I owe it all to my friends at November Project for helping light the fire inside me. And for helping me realize that not every run is going to be amazing, but the fact of the matter is you went out there and did it anyways. No matter the weather, no matter your mood you fucking did it and that’s what makes you a badass. Not your time, not your form, nothing else!!! Just doing it to the best of your ability. And maybe having a little bit of fun along the way!
So, get out there and trudge, run, walk or crawl. It doesn’t matter. You pushing yourself Beyond your comfort zone is what matters! Moving matters! You matter! You fucking badass!! And thank you, November Project, for creating such an AWESOME support system to help me become my best self! You are truly THE BEST!
