Well it has been a little over 3 months since my last post... I knew that would happen! Life gets so busy that I don't have as much time to blog as I'd like to! Anyways...
When I was growing up, my parents introduced me to every sport possible. In elementary school, I played soccer, softball, basketball, did gymnastics, cheered, took tennis lessons, just about everything. When I was in middle school I chose to concentrate on my gymnastics and cheerleading, and dabble in a little karate and volleyball, but pretty much dropped everything else. Then when I started high school I was bored with gymnastics and cheerleading, and I knew I didn't want to stick with karate and volleyball; so I completely switched tracks and chose to play soccer and run track!
The point in me saying all that, is to get the point across that I have always been a very active child, teen, and young adult. The summer before I came to MTSU I was all lean and toned from my last seasons as a high school athlete, and I was determined to stay that way. Liz and I had started working out together to keep each other accountable, and man did we do a good job! We would work out everyday together that summer. When I arrived at MTSU, my roommate and I decided we were going to keep the whole working out thing going together, and even though Liz was in Memphis still; it didn't stop her from calling and texting me everyday to make sure I wasn't slacking! Sure enough, the summer after my Freshman year, I was back in Memphis and Liz was my workout buddy, yet again! Sophomore year came and went and I was a little bit more of a slacker, but I still kept up with my workouts here and there. Summer after Sophomore year I found myself back in Memphis with Liz by my side at Lifetime Fitness everyday, multiple times a day.
After Liz's accident that summer, I couldn't get myself back into working out. I tried, but it was simply too hard. I had become accustomed to her holding me accountable and being by my side for just about every workout I took part in, and it hurt too much to try and do it without her. So I slacked, for days, which turned into months, which turned into a year and a half.
Junior year I had moved in with my current roommates, all of which were really athletic, in shape, and workout crazies. They would invite me to go, time after time after time, and I'd say no. Finally, I was ready to give it a shot, so I said yes, much to their surprise!!! It was weird, it pretty much sucked, and the next day I was really not happy I had gone since I was so sore; but it was the start I needed. First it was workouts in the gym a few times a week, then it quickly turned into an everyday event, and before I knew it, it wasn't the working out that grabbed me, it was the running.
I found myself wanting to get off of the elliptical and run on the treadmill; then I couldn't stand the treadmill and I wanted the track. Of course, I ended up getting bored with running around in circles, and the winter weather started turning into spring, and I found myself running all around campus. The sun on my skin, the wind in my hair, the music loud in my ears; I was addicted. It was my get away. If I was sad, I ran; if I was mad, I ran, even if I was happy, I ran.
I started out barely being able to run a mile outside, then I noticed I was able to go a mile and a half. Two weeks into it and I had just about doubled my millage and run around 3 miles everyday. It was the part of my days that I looked forward to; it was the one part of my day that I was not willing to miss out on. My roommates and I decided we wanted to start running races, just for fun. We signed up for 3 or 4 races, that would span out over 3 or 4 months, within a 2 week period. We found some of the funnest ones that were offered in the Middle Tennessee area, and ran towards them full force!
My very first race was the Muddy Buddy 5K. They called it a 5K, but the course was a little over 4 miles long. It took place through fields and woods, and was full of obstacles all along the way. I went into the day of race able to run 6 miles straight, yet I was so not prepared. I died. The cross country terrain was nothing I was use to. I was running up hills (which I honestly considered mountains), through creeks, and had to climb and work my way through obstacles the whole way along. I'm pretty sure I threatened Chelsey's life a few times during that race, because she was the one that found it and said "this will be fun!". Once the Muddy Buddy was all said and done, I was VERY glad that Chelsey had found it and signed us up!
The next race Chelsey and I found, that we thought would be a lot of fun, was the Titians 5K!!! We are both pretty big Titians fans, so when we found something that had to do with our love for running and our love for some Titians football, we couldn't resist! The race started at LP field, on the field. We ran around the field, out of the stadium, all around Nashville, and ended back on the field at the finish line! It was a pretty fun race!
This brings me to our most recent race... THE COLOR RUN!!!!! The color run is a very popular race that takes place all around the US. It is a 5K with different color stations all along the way. There is a white shirt only policy so that you can see just how colored you got at the end! Everyone is given a pouch of colored power for the meeting at the end, and they use the same type of colored powder to chunk at you all throughout the race! We were the first ones out of everyone we knew to sign up, so we created a team that we named Color Me Beautiful! We ended up having 12 different members on our team! It was by far the funnest race that I've run thus far! I'm hoping they come back to Nashville again next year! I was actually told that I can't even consider the color run a race, because it's more like a party :)
Whole group before...
Whole group after!
Roommates before...
Roommates after!
Back before... Back after!
Had to add a picture with one of my favorite guys!
Needless to say, I love running! I would tell anyone who is wanting to get into running to start small and slow. It's a difficult process, but it is beyond worth it. Running helps you stay healthy, while also being an incredible way to relieve stress and clear your mind! Don't get discouraged if you start out and can't do much. If you stick with it, you will start to build your endurance, cardio, and strength! Before you know it, you will be doubling your millage and not even breaking a sweat! I would say find a buddy to do it with, and sign up to run as many fun filled races you can get your hands on!
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