I RUN…..

To stay fit.  To keep my weight down.  To overcome weaknesses.  To show my solidarity for others who are going through emotionally difficult times.  To realize I can do hard things.  To show my gratitude for a healthy, strong body.  To show my children that we can set and reach our goals.  To cross the finish line and feel accomplished. 

But mostly, I run because I CAN and  for all those who  CAN NOT right now.  (Mom because of her knees, Dad because of his heart, Uncle Gary because of his accident, Maylan because of her surgeries, Teri because of her cancer, Tanya because of her health conditions, and several other family members, friends, and aquaintences for a variety of reasons, that they themselves can not run.  I often think of these people when it gets really hard on a run and I want to stop.  It is a blessing to be able to run which I never want to take for granted. 

I ran in the Mannheim 1/2 Marathon on May 12th this year.  The next day May 13th, was Mother’s Day.  The week before my oldest child Carter turned 13.  Thirteen miles…..one for each year that I have toiled as a mother.  LUCKY number 13 for me this year! 

How did it go?  My goal was to complete it in 1hour and 55 ish minutes.  That is exactly where I came in at.  It was a bit of a guessing game at the end.  They had 5 or 6 arches that usually signal the end of the race.  Just when I would pass through one another one would appear ahead of me a bit.  It felt like a mean trick to someone who just ran 12 and 3/4 of a mile or so.  When my watch finally said 13, I stopped.  My body was done.  I had just gone under an arch that had floor mats with electrical cords which usually means the end and where your timer times out.  Wrong everyone kept running!  I willed myself to start up again, but I didn’t want to!  I came to run 13 and my watch said 13!!!  Then I remembered….oh yeah it’s 13.1 or .2……reluctantly I started up again and crossed the finish line.

I’m not gonna lie, the last two miles were HELLISH.  I should have slowed down in the beginning, but I felt good so I pushed it hard.  By mile 11 I was done…..then the arches kept making me think I was done….so when I crossed the real finish line, I was beat!  Another tricky obstacle I had to overcome:  The race started at 6:30 pm.  I guess this is normal in Europe.  I am much more of a morning runner.  I did train some in the evenings, but It never is my favorite time.  I get a stomach ache from already having eaten during the day, and generally I’m more tired.  I had a terrible stomach ache after the race.  It was bad until around 2 am. 

Me recovering: 

I trained all my long runs with my friend Rebecca this time.  She lives in my village and has been such a great friend and running buddy.  It was really nice to have someone to keep me going on the long runs this time around.  She rocked the marathon….finishing in 1 hour and 51 minutes.  We ran the first 6.5 together and then she took off.  She is a few years younger than me, so I don’t feel too bad about her leaving me in her NIKE dust. 

 

The other gals in the ward who also ran:  Rebecca, Candice, Missy, me Courtney, and Nicole (Candice’s sister).  At the end of the race we were met with the usual food like, apples, bananas, granola bars, water, soda, and BEER!!!  Oh my how I laughed at the after race beverage of choice for my German comrades.