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| image by daniel mackie |
yesterday, i woke up two hours earlier than usual. this was because i was registered to run for Earth Day.
i am a novice when it comes to running. i only run on weekends. and when i have learned that i was running 5k just a day earlier, anxiety came in. i did not have the luxury of time to psyche myself up for the race, just as i have in the previous races.
so as i woke up on race day, i've prayed for strength both physical and mental. i knew that if i was to run the usual way i run on weekends, finishing that 5k won't be easy. during my regular weekend rounds at my favorite campus oval, i do not usually make 5k. uh..oh...
doing 5k i knew will require from me a little bit more of everything
a little bit more pain,
a little bit more breathlessness,
a little bit more lightheadedness,
a little bit more sweat,
a little bit more stretch,
a little bit more songs in my head...
but i finished the race! (46 minutes or so...)
Jacqueline Gareau has put it in words perfectly:
"The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy...It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed.”
half way through the course my legs were screaming... breath running out...
my heart was racing so fast i was sure, it went ahead of me and was already in the finish line.
really, it was the will to finish that saved me. and really, the reason why the will was stronger was because i ran with hubby on my side. he was so sweet to agree not to run 10k so I could have a running buddy.
i like it when we run together. it allows me to push myself harder for reasons like... i feel guilty not making him run his normal pace (i run way too slow than he normally does), so have to run run run (and it's embarrassing to make him walk half the time)... it also comforts me to know that just in case i lose it while running, somebody will be there to catch my fall :)
thank you hubby for running with me.
i am looking forward to another one... a 10k perhaps... we'll see
