If ya’ll could see the PNP message board you would have to laugh at us and our giddy excitement. So many of us are either runners or runners in training. Many of us are planning to do the Vegas 1/2 Marathon in December and so the hot topic these days is…Will I finish without having to walk?
Good gracious this takes me back. When I started running I never thought I could. Hell, my first 5K I finished in a cool 52 minutes and honey, I was crying and beaming with pride with that blistering pace. After that race I dreamed of doing longer distances because my best friend was a long time runner. She finally told me to “man up” and start training. Guess I’m lucky because I’ve always been surrounded by people who believed in me more than I did myself. They made the self-absorbed Diva you all love today.
So, I manned up and started training. She would tell me to back off my training, but I was absolutely convinced I, a fat girl, wouldn’t make it. I ran more than I should, beat myself up for having to take walk breaks, and was fearful of fueling afterward because I would gain weight. This only got me skinny fat and a stinky hamstring that flares up to this day.
The last couple of races I ran I got smarter. I still overtrained to a degree but I did start appreciating post-workout fuel. You know what? My runs got better and my training got easier. Next was adding in purposeful walk breaks inspired by Jeff Galloway. You know what? My runs got faster, my hamstring bothered me less, and my training got easier.
There is no shame in walking and running. Let me say this again…THERE IS NO SHAME IN WALKING AND RUNNING. It’s called smart. Most of us with weight problems just aren’t born with running physiques. If we were, we’d be on the Runner’s World site and not the Phit-N-Phat site. We have to run smart and train smart so that we are running and training smart at 70.
For those who worry about finishing…DON’T! If I have to carry you on my back the last mile I will. All of you will finish without fear or problem. We’ll do it together, get our goofy post race photos made, throw them on the site for the world to see, and then hit a buffet for our post workout refuel. Woohoo! Our motto is this: Last place is the chick on her couch wondering if she can do it versus actually doing it.
I love you guys and I can’t wait to experience this with you.