Why I Do This

I asked my husband yesterday morning, as he dropped me off near City Hall in Dallas, "remind me again why I do this?" We both laughed. He, in amusement. Me, with a nervous lump in my stomach. You see, he's not exactly sure why I do this, and by "this" I mean run. But he's proud of me for doing it. A year ago, I wasn't even a runner. Yesterday I ran my second half marathon.

So why do I do this? I run because I am stronger and tougher than I thought I was. I run because it gives me goals I can accomplish. I run because it gives me freedom. I run because of how I feel when I'm done. I run because I have a new-found sense of determination. I run because it makes me feel strong. I run because I can.

I'm thrilled that this race was a PR. My chip time (I forgot to turn off my Garmin when I finished) was 2:46:43. I improved over my White Rock time by almost 12 minutes. I am beyond happy with how much I've improved. I hope to finish my next one around 2:30.

Thank you to the crew that put on the RnR Dallas Half Marathon. It was a great course, a fantastic cause, lots of awesome people running, fun costumes, and even an Elvis! And thank you to the people who came out on a chilly and dreary Sunday morning to cheer us on. Families, babies, dogs, cheer teams from area high schools. Thank you to the bands that played along the course. You guys, literally, rocked! Thank you to the woman sitting near Campisi's on Mockingbird, just before mile 7, with the sign "Embrace the suck." So true. I needed that!

Thank you to my trainer, EJ. My mileage has not been good this winter due to injury and weather, but the strength training was a major part of my finishing the race this strong. All in all, it was a good day. A lot cooler than I expected, but a good day. When we got home at noon, I fired up the oven. I earned my treat. I had three of these bad boys. They were soooo good!

My 13.1 flowers from my husband. :)