Day 18, ABCs of Gratitude: Running

Good morning and welcome to day 18 of the ABCs of Gratitude!

We are now on the letter 'R'--and, I'll be honest, I've been looking forward to this one since 'A'. Today I am sharing my gratitude for 'Running'! I am grateful for the health I have to be able to run, the peace of mind running brings me, the lessons I have learned while running alone, and the great people I have met while running in groups.

Growing up, I was blessed to be part of many different athletic programs--primarily soccer--where I garnered the basics in physical and mental fitness. Running during that time came third to the actual skill of the sport itself (second was the social side of it...viva las pizza parties!). In fact, growing up I avoided the running aspect of my training as much as possible; I even used a heart murmur that I had discovered while snooping through my adoption files as an excuse! Needless to say running--up until this past January--was not an activity I sought out.

Then I got an email. The email was from a friend of mine asking a group of us gals if we'd like to train and run in the More/Fitness Half-Marathon in April of this year. The email came in mid-January which would give us all a little over 10 weeks to train. As per my previous paragraph, my default response would be a kind and sincere decline. For some reason, though, something in my gut was all for this. Did I eat something weird for breakfast? What is going on, gut? I didn't respond right away and took about a week to think it over and decide if I was ready to commit to something like this. The race cost a pretty penny for me so spending a large amount of money--for a RUN--was a foreign and nerve-wracking experience. But then, for no other reason than my gut telling me I should do this, I signed up.

This was after I had to lie down for about 10 minutes, haha!

I won't go into the details of my training for the next 3.5 months but what I will tell you is that during the time I trained, I was transformed. Physically I got stronger and lost some of my "nesting" weight that I had gained the previous year. Mentally and emotionally, running became my meditation and I became much more stable and calm. Over the years, I had lost a piece of self-discipline that I had when I was in organized sports. Training for the half-marathon brought it back along with a newfound confidence in myself.

These days, I am fortunate to have a boyfriend I can run with and talk tirelessly about different training methods. I am blessed to have access to some great routes in one of the most remarkable cities in the world. I am really grateful that running has helped me fit into my skinny jeans again!! But I am most grateful for the non-physical benefits I have been able to reap from sticking with it. Running is a prime example of getting out of what you put in.

Do you enjoy running or walking? What are some of the benefits you get out of your workout?

Have a wonderful day! Hope to see you here tomorrow!