I honestly thought I would be at the point in this blog where I'd be telling you about my current training schedules, weight loss accomplishments, race goals / results, and other updates along that same vein. Reflecting upon my journey, however, has evoked memories of other moments, of critical interactions with people that have shined a light on the path from my couch to a marathon.
In an earlier post, I told you about my wife, Michelle, telling me to just "go out there and start running"; and last week, I shared how my brother-in-law Mike's Ironman Triathlon and his running for Cystic Fibrosis really pushed me down the path.
So I was on the road...but I still didn't know where it was going. To be perfectly candid, when I first started running, it was not just to get myself in shape. In fact, an underlying reason to my running was because I was getting tired of the South Beach Diet, and I knew that if I could get to the point where I could run around my neighborhood (3.66 miles) five times a week, I would burn a lot of calories and would thus be able to go back to eating what I wanted whenever I wanted. Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
Knowing myself - and recognizing these unhealthy thoughts - in order to get out of the "I just need to run so I can eat more" mindset, it became obvious to me that I had to start putting road races on the schedule (5Ks were all I had in mind). Having competed at different levels in multiple sports, I just knew that working "for something" like a race would really help motivate me to keep on keeping on. But then a question (and its answer) arose...
Where Should I Run?
"I'm Running the Marathon at Disney" - Deanna Foerman
Around this time last year, a Facebook friend of mine posted that she was running the Full Marathon at Disney World in January 2013...and (no offense, Deanna) I was shocked ("blown away" is probably a better description). I remember thinking, "she hasn't been running that long...can she really be running a full marathon?" At the same time, though, after picking myself up off the floor because I was so impressed, I also remember thinking that running at Disney seemed like it would be a good time, so when the time came to choose a race, I thought back to Deanna's post...at the same time, this thought went through my head..."Even though I'll never be able to run a marathon or a half marathon, I bet they might have a 5K, too."
After checking the RunDisney website, I found there was indeed a 5K on marathon weekend as well, so I signed up and thought, "now that's something I could get ready for!" And then I had the idea of having my daughter Mary would run it with me...and the rest was history. Mary and I had a blast, and now Michelle is going to be joining us to make it a family affair in the coming year!
Thanks for introducing me to RunDisney, Deanna!
But I'll Never Run More Than a 5K...Right?
"I know it may be hard
to imagine, but at some point, I believe that you will want to run a marathon
(I actually believe everyone wants to run a marathon whether they know it or
not) and when you do, let me know and I will come down and run one with you." - Roger Wright
Just a few days before Mike's Ironman, I was motivating myself with some running videos on YouTube, and after coming across the following, I had no choice but to reach out to Roger because he had been where I was and had gotten to a place I had not imagined possible...
...and I'm proud to say that Roger has been a (sometimes tough, which was needed) mentor and, more importantly, a good friend since last September and that next year we will be running a full marathon together. But I'll tell you more about that in a future post.
Until then, enjoy your journey...
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