Some adventures you know you are going to take with your kids. Things like first steps, first roller coaster rides, first boyfriend or girlfriend, etc. Some of these things are expected, but other things are unexpected. Some are pleasant, and some are not. This new adventure Madison and I are going on is the good and exciting kind.
It started about a month ago when I was hiking with my friend, Shelly. She was asking me if I was going to run the half marathon this year or not. Shelly and I had run and trained together several times when I trained for and ran the half marathon in 2014. This was my second time running the half marathon here in town. I also ran the half marathon in 2012.
The truth was that I was just having a hard time feeling it this year. It takes a lot of time. It takes a lot of focused attention on nutrition. It costs me sleep when I wake up for those early morning runs, and I like my sleep. The training and conditioning asks a lot from the body too which could include injuries if you have a forty some year old body and apparently some dominant leg issues like I do.
 |
| Photo taken by Shannan Painter Photography (editing mine) |
I was stewing it over still in my mind. I wasn’t really ready to commit to it. I went into Madison’s room one Saturday morning to wake her up and tell her there were pancakes and bacon for breakfast. As I sat on the edge of the bed to wake her up, we began to talk. She asked me if I was going to run again this year. I told her honestly that I didn’t know if I was really feeling it this year. I guess I felt a little bit of a “been there, done that” feeling. She then said, “Well, I was thinking if you ran this year that I would run with you.”
I was more than surprised. I first thought about her age, but the only concern the experts have usually are when the child is not done growing which she is fully grown.
I then began to ask and tell her the standard stuff. Do you realize you will be asking a lot of your body? Are you willing to be diligent to get enough sleep especially on nights before runs? Do you realize the time commitment it will take to train for the half marathon? Are you willing to drink lots of water, eat well, and carb load to give your body the energy it is going to need to run that distance?
The answer was yes to all of the questions. So, barring any injuries (on my part) or backing out on her part (which doesn’t seem like is going to happen), we are running the half marathon. Together! Talk about finding my muse and my reason to run.
Worst case scenario, I have two more summers with my daughter in the house. I hope it will be much longer than that, but that is a possibility. So, when my daughter asks me to train with her and share the wisdom and mistakes I have made from running before, I feel like one blessed mommy! I am excited!
Like I told her, this is one of those experiences that you have to plan for, train for, and work for, but when you do, you feel like you could do anything. I am excited for her to have an experience under her belt which could teach her that the very things she never thought she could do, she could achieve by taking it one step at a time.