Well after I achieved the major accomplishment of running a half marathon, I decided to get involved in a running group called Albuquerque Fit. I figured I didn't know very many people, so trying to meet others with a similar interest would be a great start, right? In the early springtime the new session had started and there were 3 groups you could sign up for: 10K, Half Marathon, and Marathon. Looking at the 26 week schedule, I decided joining the marathon group would be best. I actually joined it with intentions of running another half marathon in the middle of July, approximately halfway through the program. I grabbed two ladies that I had been running with and we all thought great idea.
Well to make a long story shorter, we ended up not running a half marathon in July and actually have been training for a FULL MARATHON! That's right, Chelsea- never wants to run at lacrosse practice- Snyder has managed to get her butt in gear and run enough to prepare for a full marathon. With that being said, two weeks ago was pretty monumental in that I ran 20 miles for the very first time in just over four hours. I could not believe all of that in my head and kept repeating for a while, "You just ran four hours and 20 miles. How did you get here?!"
I will say this, I've heard from tons of skinny little marathon runners "Really everything in running is mental," and I thought to myself, "You're mental for thinking running a marathon is JUST mental." I would say I am a true believer that my body can do way more than my mind physically thinks is possible. There is just this feeling and idea of moving and doing more than my mind thinks my body can do that gives you a sense of empowerment. Not only has my mental outlook developed through an experience like this, but my physical outlook and ability has changed so much. For instance, I travelled to Vancouver, Canada last weekend to visit a great friend and knew I had to put in some mileage. I found out that Stanley Park is this large park that you can run along most of the English Bay following this path and has the significance of New York's Central Park in the US. Typically if I'm on vacation, the idea of running is nowhere close to making the cut on my itinerary. However, I was mystified by the incredible beauty of Stanley Park, the city, and the Bay. I wouldn't have seen it in the way I would've on this trip a year ago. I'd say the idea of hiking to me in general would not even make the cut and we actually decided to see those beautiful mountains you see in the media when spanning pictures of Vancouver! My time spent there was more valuable than other places I've visited in a long time just by being more active in general. I guess I would like to challenge you if you are not an active outdoorsy person like I would have classified myself as a year ago to ask yourself "Why not?" I asked myself why I didn't try some of these things and realized I was truly missing out on a great experience.
I am flying to Denver this weekend to run the Rock n' Roll Denver Marathon so wish me luck!! I will need all of the positive vibes I can get coming my way! I will update with the results and other changes going on as soon as possible!
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