My Healthy Revolution: Two Months In

In two days, I will have been on this journey to the BMO half-marathon in Vancouver for two months. It's sure been some ride so far. I have learned so much about what my body is capable of, and I am starting to see the strength that it used to have back when I was in high school. The weight is slowly dropping, and clothes that I thought were a lost cause are starting to fit again. I know I will never see my pre-pregnancy body though. And I am okay with that. I have the marks of a mother, and I wouldn't have it any other way. The stretch marks, the saggy skin in places, the little signs that I have had a baby, the body that just isn't shaped the way it used to be. These are my battle scars. Signs that I brought life into this world not once, but twice. Signs that my body stretched to unbelievable amounts and accommodated a 10 pound baby. No amount of training will get rid of them.  I am at peace with that. Changing that part of my body is not the goal of this training anyway.

BMO Vancouver half-marathon course--21 km!

The training. Oh the training. Speed, hills, long runs. All preparing me for a run I never would have thought I would ever attempt. I am not a runner, but I am running. And for two months, I have been consistent and determined. I have trained five days a week without fail. If I have missed a day for whatever reason (I do have kids!), I have made up for it on a rest day. And, I am not training in California here. This is Edmonton, Alberta, Canada! Extreme cold, snow, slush, wind. I have run in -31 C with the wind chill and come home with tingly legs that took hours and hours to warm up. On those days, it takes fifteen minutes to get ready to go out because of all of the layers I need to put on. I continue to amaze myself that I actually go out on those days. But this exercise is my new normal. I love the way I feel after a run. No matter how crappy I feel before a run, no matter how cold it is or how tired I am, afterwards I feel amazing, like I could conquer the world. My body craves the exercise. I don't want that to change, so the cold can't sway me. It would be too easy to give in to the excuses and not go and then have that become my new normal. Thank goodness for a great team who motivates me to keep going and to ignore those excuses my brain tries to make. 

And the excuses. I don't know what it is, but the last couple of weeks have been hard to get out. The excuses have just tried to force their way into my brain. It has been really hard to shut them out. But, I know if I do, if I give in even one time, then it will be too easy to give in the next time. So, I can't. I can't let myself give in. I refuse to fail at this. I refuse to give up. I may not be the fastest runner. I may not be able to run the longest. I may not have the best running form. But it's not about that. In the words of Superchick, I'm going to "Rock what I got" and run (thanks to my good friend who introduced me to this band...and whose husband happens to be a part of!). I am not only running this for me. I am running it for those who suffer with blood cancers. They don't get the choice to make excuses. They fight every day for their lives because if they don't, if they make excuses, they may not have the next day to fight. And because of money raised for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada through the Team in Training program, they are more likely to survive with their lives. I'm not only doing this for my boys and I. I am doing this for those who suffer. I am doing this for you, and for everyone else that I love. So that, God forbid, if you or a loved one are ever diagnosed with blood cancer, you will win your fight as well. So far, I have raised 30% of my individual goal of $3000. But, I'm still a long way from it. And our team goal of $40,000 is still a long way off too. Click here to donate to this worthwhile cause. Even $10 helps!