Friday, December 26, 2014

Year in review

As the year draws to an end i have one race remaining on the "14" docket  i feel it's time for a review. Having come to the almost half way point in my race calender reflecting back a bit is necessary.
Let me begin with the fact that I have trained hard since June for what is supposed to be a landmark year in my life.
I Starting with a goal to reclaim my physical and mental health to make a change in the direction i was allowing my life to travel in.So in September i got the party started by completing my first race.
From that day to now these old bones have finished twenty races which included a miler that almost killed me on Thanksgiving day, an assortment of 5ks, a 10k, and 3 half marathons. Along the way I met some really nice folks at races and learned the hard way to do research on the events i pick.
I did have some setbacks early on, due to pushing myself. My bad knee gave out just before my first in person race and i have struggled through it ever since. After the twenty year old knee injury could no longer be ignored, I made the decision to switch from run/walk to just plain walk. A woman on a mission has to keep it moving and thats what i did. It took some time for me not to be embarrassed by it though. I had to embrace the saying "my race my pace" before i let go of the shame though. The bright side was i discovered the joy of remote racing.
Once I discovered that i could sign myself up for virtual editions of realtime races to save money and check my progress by showing up in person for them in the following year it was on.Thus far it has worked great with a one exception.
I also suffered a disappointment or two. The women's race series in St Petersburg was cancelled, thank goodness i got my money back. I thought of traveling to another girl themed race but was to tired emotionally and physically to enter the run like a diva event in St Augustine. Im sorry for not being able to cross off a womens race this year in person but it will be done in 2015. My major set back happened in November. I gain weight after my mother took ill and fell into a funk. Unlike the past i had events to complete and with a broken heart i managed to complete them without training. This path saved me and while i put the November slump in the setback category it also represented my biggest victory. When times get hard i have always buckled down and did what i had to do by changing direction and focusing on everyone else. This time i took care of business keeping myself in mind. Bam, its what i needed to pull through the crisis and claim victory. I'm still struggling but Im stronger and carrying less baggage.
What i have learned so far is to not let road blocks derail me. No more rushing to signing up for a race early no matter how good of a discount i get if it's not a virtual.  I am stuck running races in person now that Im not interested in traveling to anymore.  Its not a good way to start the new year but i will make the most off it. I also learned to get in where you fit in. Joining moms run this town was a great decision but black girls run hasn't worked out yet. I see them at races but have not really been to any of the runs. I might have been expecting to much from that group because they are not a force in my local area. Surprisingly my Girltrek experience continues to inspire and i will keep close to them in the new year but let go of the group leader title. The real lesson here is my solo journey crosses many paths and i need to continue using those shared experiences to encourage myself and lift my game to where it needs to be.
Summing up my experience thus far i can say it's been good. I  learned the does, don'ts and must that a newbie should and hope to make corrections in the second half of  my 2014/15 season. Bring on the New years, this sister is ready!

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