Grateful Monday

Happy Monday! Did everyone survive the Thanksgiving weekend? Did you go out on Black Friday? I enjoyed our Thanksgiving—it was low key and stress free! We enjoyed time with our extended family and stuffed our faces full of delicious food! Today, for Grateful Monday, I am grateful and thankful for my health. I haven’t always been the healthiest person. I remember being sick all the time as a child. And even in my early adult life, I recall getting everything anyone near me had—if someone had the flu, I was sure to get it. But over the last 5 years or so, I made some lifestyle changes. I lost about 50 lbs, started exercising on a regular basis and really watched the foods and beverages I consumed. I really believe these changes have helped me become a healthier adult.

This healthy habit has ultimately extended down to my children. They are accustomed to eating fruits and vegetables at our meals and snacks. They are also very active with sports.

Three years ago I was encouraged to run in a 5k—the Jingle Bell Run. I had never been a runner—walker, yes, but not run. I’m not fast and I didn’t think I had the stamina to last that long! I had just overcame a huge obstacle with three of my Sorority Sisters that summer by walking 39.1 miles in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer (that was amazing), so running a little over 3 miles seemed very doable! I trained for a bit just to prepare myself for the distance. I remember taking off when the gun fired off—it was such a rush! There were so many people, avid runners and newbies, just like me! I held my own. My goal was to finish before a walker—and I did! In fact, I had such an adrenaline rush, I wanted to keep running!

This year was my third Jingle Bell Run and my 7 year old son asked if he could run it with me. I was thrilled! He ran one other time in a Family Fun Run—he sprinted almost the entire mile! I had to prepare him that there would be no way he could sprint the 5k! Off we went! He did so good! He kept a good pace, stopped real quick to get a sip of water and kept on running. That little guy didn’t stop! At the very end, I told him we could sprint to the finish line—he did and came it at 32.09! Amazing! He told me that when he ran at the very end he couldn’t feel his legs. And once it was over, he said he was happy he didn’t throw up! (he’s been to a few of my races, always waiting for me at the finish line, so he’s seen a few people come to the end and then lose their cookies!) I was so proud of him. My daughter has walked in the Jingle Bell Run these last three years with her great friend, Abby, who has RHA. It’s a special event for them and she looks forward to supporting her friend each year. How awesome is that?

 

 

Back in October, my daughter and I ran together in a Breast Cancer 5k. I had done this race the previous year with a few other sorority sisters and after it was over, Hailey asked if she could run with me next year—so we did! Hailey hasn’t run any further than the 1 mile Family Fun Run we did in the fall, so this was all new to her too! I told her to just keep going, she could take breaks if she wanted to and I told her she was in control of our pace. We started out slow, mainly because there were so many walkers mixed in with the runners, but once we cleared them, she took off on a nice pace. We stopped a few times to rest her legs, but overall, she was amazing! She finished 31.29 with a pace of 10.08! That’s awesome for a girl that’s never trained and never ran further than a mile!

 

 

I hope we run together in more 5ks—it will be a great family experience and just another way we can remain healthy together! What fun things do your family do together?

Thanks for visiting! See you soon!

Cindy