Super Blogger Strikes Again...

Two posts in a week..oh my something has come over me :) This time I wanted to write about running, or just being healthy in general. I've always been fairly healthy and have tried to stay in decent shape. Of course that has included some spurts of activity and some long stretches of none but overall, pretty balanced. Shaun had a very active lifestyle with lots of exercise, sports and lifting. Its one of the many reasons I loved him. We were a lot alike. I think I equated a healthy lifestyle with true balance in life as well. If I'm able to manage stress, work, home life etc and still workout, that means I'm doing well. But then I got pregnant, had a baby, and soon after, Shaun was diagnosed with cancer. Priorities shifted. My new goal was to spend every possible moment outside of work with Shaun and Bryce. We instituted the every weekend adventure rule. Every weekend, the three of us would go somewhere fun and make memories. Some of my favorites were running up and down the big sled hill (with Jeremiah and Elaine), mini golfing at Navy Pier (with Phillip Parnell), going to the botanic garden (with the Dunns or the Hubbards), so many adventures :) I don't know that Bryce remembers most or even any of them, but I'm certainly glad we did that. But all that time I felt like life was imbalanced. I had always equated working out with normalcy so I was disappointed in myself for not being able to find time/motivation during this time. Of course, it needed to be this way. I would have regretted missing out on time with Shaun. But now that 9 months have passed since he died, I get to re-evaluate my priorities and find a new balance. So I started running again. I really have to thank Katy Laux Albin for the motivation. She wanted to run a race with me. I was hesitant since I hadn't run in a long time. So my stipulations were 1.) it had to be a 5K and 2.) it had to be in the evening. I hate morning runs. So she emails me and says there is a Big Ten race downtown in July (this was in early June) to support our respective alma maters (UofI and IU). But, its a 10K and it starts at 7:30am. Ok so both my criteria were thrown out the window, but I accepted anyways. And hurried up and bought a treadmill within a week ;) The training has been fun. I actually kind of enjoyed letting my mind wander, listening to music, and just being free. I ran my first 10K ever on Saturday morning. And with Katy's help and support, I finished, even sprinted the last 100 meters or so. It might not have been the fasted time, but we didn't walk. I made my goal of finishing but more importantly, I managed to reach my goal of getting life back on track again. I know the new job and continued stresses around the house will challenge me, but at least now I feel better equipped to deal with them. I got this ;)