I Can Do Hard Things!

So, two weeks ago my mom told me that she, Lexi, my Aunt Amy, and my cousin's fiance, Corrina were all running a 5K in Boise. When she told me this, my response was something to the effect of, "Ha okay. You guys have a great time.....weirdos." And then for some reason, five minutes later I was telling her to sign me up too. (P.S. apparently for some people a 5K is a joke and barely counts as a run. If you are one of those people, stop reading now) I had really never run before. Once in a while (like during PE or tennis) but just for a minute. I always thought runners were weird (and I mostly still do). But, at the beginning of the summer I thought it might be fun to push myself a little bit and maybe try to do a 5K in August or something. Yeah, two weeks is not the same as two months. I tried to run 3 miles every day for two weeks (by "run" I mean run for a minute, then walk, then jog, then walk slow, then speed walk, then jog). It's hard starting totally from scratch. I knew from the start that I wouldn't be able to full-out run a 5K after two weeks, but I wasn't about to sit at the finish line while everyone else ran in the race. So, at 8:00 this morning, I lined up with about 500 other girls for the "See Jane Run" 5K race in Boise. Before the race started, I thought I would probably puke from nerves. Luckily, I didn't. I started off at a pretty good pace right next to Lexi for about the first mile. I was feeling great until about the 1 mile mark, then I slowed down. I won't give you a play-by-play of the race, but I will tell you that I finished. I also won't tell you my time or what place I came in, because they are not really worthy of being bragged about. I will tell you that I beat my personal record by three minutes though, so that was exciting. And yes, there were people who came in behind me. I wasn't dead last. At the end of the race was a chocolate and champagne celebration. That was pretty exciting. We all got shirts that say "I run for chocolate." Yes, sad as it may be, this is what motivates me to run. Corrina ended up coming in second place overall, which was super cool. She's an amazing runner. Kind of my role model. Plus she got some free running shoes out of it. Motivation? I think yes. The rest of the day wasn't filled with too much excitement. Just eating, sleeping, and hanging out with the family. It really was a great day. I did something that I had never in a million years thought I would do. Lexi's theme at girls camp last week was "I can do hard things." This became our battle cry of sorts for this race. And it's so true! I may not have run the entire time, and I may not have come in first place, but it was a hard thing for me and I did it. Today I also caught a little glimpse of why those weird people love running so much. It's possible that I could learn to love it too. I am planning on continuing to run and hopefully get in on some more 5K's this summer. Who knows...See Jane Run 5K today, Boston Marathon tomorrow. Okay, that was a joke. I highly doubt I will ever run a marathon...please don't expect more than a 5K from me at this point.