US Wellness

Sunday, November 3, 2013

The Bucket Blog

There are 47 days until my 31st birthday.  As I am no stranger to all things cliche, I made a bucket list last year.  Thirty is a magical age (aka a slap in the face) where you realize that you're finally an adult, even if you've been at the grown up table at holidays for a while. You need to make sure you've done some of things you wanted to do because there might be other adventures like families and babies on the horizon.  Also, you've found a few gray hairs and maybe you have an ache and/or pain here or there.  

The Official Bucket list didn't have to all be accomplished this year, but I wanted to get a good jump start.  I clearly remember waking up one morning in February with the then-crazy idea that I wanted to run a 5k.  Why did I want to do this?  I have no idea.  I hated...I mean hated running.  Who was going to run with me?  When would I do this? Would I actually do this?  I decided that I would call a friend who would probably be excited to do this with me and who would make me accountable for this decision.  I literally dialed Josh's number probably 30 seconds later while lying in bed after finding a groupon deal for the Rave Run at the end of April.  He agreed, and I immediately started "training."  

Interestingly enough, the 5k didn't make the life-long Bucket list.....a half marathon did.  However, I had never considered that this would be a possibility for 2013.  But then, after a few 5ks....a 10k....and some longer 8, 9, 10 mile runs it became a real possibility.  The summer and my running became a real roller coaster of emotions for me.  Even now, with the half completed I can't look back and say it was a smooth path.  It absolutely wasn't.  Training was f#cking hard....finding time was hard....dealing with an injury was hard.....and my own mental battles with my abilities and performance were hard.  Lots of tears were shed, that's for sure.

I'm not sure I ran my best race and I still struggle with that a bit, but I did it.  I knocked something off my list - something that seemed completely impossible this year.  As much as I look at my time (official chip time: 2:17:50) and wish it was 3 minutes faster.....I look at my time and think that that's really freakin' incredible for a girl who worried that she wouldn't finish her first 5k not 6 months prior. 

Oh, and my friend....he's no longer just my friend....he's my boyfriend and that pretty much ices my running cake. I wouldn't be writing this post if it wasn't for him....agreeing to run....constantly running faster than me....and listening to me whine and complain about running 24/7.  He's awesome and I'm so proud of him for all of the running accomplishments he had this year, too.  :) 

It's my plan to switch my focus a little bit back to Crossfit right now, but running isn't over.  Running has turned out to be one of the most rewarding decisions I've ever made and I'll continue to do it for the next 47 days and beyond.  




2 comments:

  1. Awesome, Erica ... and, Josh, too. Relationships are all about overcoming challenges together. Congratulations and my best wishes on your continued journey.

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  2. Everyone reading this should also know that while Erica may not be sure that she ran her best race, although she’s certainly capable of running faster in the future, the half-marathon indeed was the best race she’s ever run. Many months ago, we ran the Rave Run 5k and in a bundle of innocent excitement, accomplished our goals while bonding and having a lot of fun. The race was nothing but exuberance and enthusiasm.

    The half-marathon was a different story. It was a story of frustrating training, of pain, and of mental doubt. But on the day of the half-marathon, and each day leading up to it, Erica was the best version of herself: she cared so much she shed tears at times, she worked hard, she got excited about running fashion (yes, thank you Erica for our custom race shirts!), she laughed, she broke down, and she kept going. And at the end of it, when she kept going, when we kept going together, she did what she has always done in the end at every turn in her life: she took the best of everything around her and put it all together in the best way possible. Then she made something of it. On October 20, she took the best of herself and turned that into a woman who went from no running ever to a half-marathon finisher, and one with a good time at that. I couldn’t be more proud of her or to have been a part of this story.

    So here’s to ticking off, and adding things to the bucket list, for what is a bucket list but more than a way to challenge oneself and enjoy life in new ways? I’ve enjoyed this story, and Erica and I can’t wait to write the next chapter, together.

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