My first 5k

Eight months ago you would not have seen me near any type of organized run or for that matter any type of exercise. I wouldn’t have even thought anything about it when I saw posted information on the fitness center, running clubs, hikes, etc at work I just walked by them. I don’t even think I knew how far a 5k was in terms of miles. That all changed recently during a Business Update Meeting (BUM) a slide was presented with things that were happening with the United Way Drive during the pledge drive. The slide that caught my eye was the 5k run; yes I thought to myself “I need to do that run”. When I got back to my desk I sent a message to the presenter asking him for more information on the 5k run. He sent me the URL and I went in and printed up the form to take with me the next morning to the 5k run. This was going to be my very first official 5k run, I was excited, nervous, and anxious, do you get the picture? Sure I had run a 5k on the treadmill and outside a few times but never one that was an organized event with lots of other people. This would be a new adventure for me; after all I had just started running a few times a week a little over a month ago. The next morning I arrived at Tumbleweed Park in Chandler at 7:00 am for late registration, as I stood there in line I started to think what was I getting myself into. I looked around the park and saw all these people that looked like they knew what they were doing, that they had done this before. Who was I to think I could do this? Then I reminded myself I was one of these people, I had trained for the last 8 months with a great trainer, someone that had taught me that the words “I can’t” shouldn’t be in any part of your language ever! He taught me how to breath, to not run to fast, and to stay at a pace that I was comfortable at. I knew I could run on the treadmill at a 4.7 or 4.8 and felt good, like I wasn’t going to die, so I figured I would do that, running at that pace is about a 14.5 minute mile. I envisioned myself going over the finish line last, but all that mattered would be that I did it, that I had ran my very first race. As the time got closer to the start of the race I realized I could do this, I was going to do this. It didn’t matter if I came in last; I was accomplishing something that just 8 short months ago would have not even been in my thoughts. I started the race at a nice steady pace, I felt good I could do this. When I was about 1 mile into it I started to have my doubts as I realized how far 3.1 miles was; but I had started and I was going to finish. I walked for a few minutes and then thought to myself “I am not having a hard time breathing, I was running at a nice steady pace, and the longer I walked the longer it is would take me to finish”, so I started jogging again and each time I felt like walking I looked ahead and thought the end is near I can do this, I am almost done. As I approached the finish line and saw 36 minutes and 35 seconds on the time clock I knew I had done it, I was going to finish and I knew that my first 5k was a success. It was a success not because I finished in 37 minutes, not because I did 11.53 minute mile, it was a success because I didn’t give up, it was a success because I ran across the finish line! Yes a lot has changed in 8 months, there have been many transformations in my life, they are all because I didn’t quit, because I didn’t say “I can’t”, and because I did it for me, BECAUSE I AM WORTH IT!! Do something for you today, do something that you will be proud of, and most of all do it because you can, because you are worth it!