Everyone says they're too tired...

  But I'm tired, too!  I'm a full-time wife and mother of a 6-year-old boy and 3-year-old girl as well as a part-time OB nurse who works evening shifts twice a week.  There are nights when I don't get to bed until 1 or 2 am because I need to wind down from work or that's the only quiet time I have to myself in a 24-hour period.  Yet, it doesn't stop me from getting my slightly chubby self to the gym the next day.  Yes, I said chubby!  I have sweet friends who say I look fine but, seriously, there's some chub that could disappear.  And I don't mind because I love to eat!  I'm not going to stop eating carbs or meat or sweets.  I do intend to not stuff my face full of them and be more mindful of what travels from my hand to my mouth at meal times and in-between.  But I've only got one go at this life and I sure as heck intend to enjoy myself.  Because, unless it's from a Fear Factor/Bizarre Foods menu, I'm going to eat it.  I love my baguettes, my puerco asado con platanos y arroz con frijoles negros, belgian waffles, pasta carbonara, Juicy Lucy burgers, Pad Thai...  Well, you get the picture, right?  I love food.  It's the best ambassador out there and an easy way to experience different cultures.  But that "travel+food= love" soap box is for another blog.  (Although, once the kids are older and I have more money, traveling to run races in different countries could totally go hand-in-hand with this blog...)

  Anyways, back to running.  I never hesitate to post about my workouts on Facebook because I'm damn proud of what I can do with my body, especially since I spent the first 30 years of my life not exercising or taking proper care of it.  You can call me crazy, say I have a limitless amount of energy, etc.  The truth is that exercise makes me a better person.  I have more patience with my children and husband, more energy to get through my hectic day.  And this nugget of truth is the most important aspect of why I run.  Having experienced postpartum depression and living daily with a cloud of stress hanging over my head, working out is my natural anti-depressant.  There is nothing better than going on a long run for a couple of hours, putting in my earbuds, and listening to The Avett Brothers or whatever musical group I choose to be my running companions.  Speed is never my goal (although getting faster is nice).  Continuing to put one foot in front of another is what fuels my desire to keep going.  The more I run, the more distance I put between myself and the depression and the family history of high blood pressure and diabetes that chase after me.  Plus, if I'm still running at 70, maybe I'll actually win for my age group for one in my life...:)

With my fellow running warriors, Roselyn and Heidi

  Yesterday I participated in my 5th half-marathon.  I ran the Annapolis ZOOM Half-Marathon in 2:21:37 which was my fastest time to date.  I walked my first half-marathon when I was pregnant with my second child in 4:20:58 and vowed to never walk another half-marathon again.  And, while I wanted to stop people from passing me, I also took pure joy in the fact that I was able to just keep going.  Yes, my plantar fascia was acting up and, yes, if I was a few pounds lighter I could probably go faster.  But I was running, on hills no less, and running well for me.  I was surrounded by beautiful women of all ages, shapes, and backgrounds who were simply delighting in the fact that they were out there and running/walking/moving.  And that's the whole beauty of running, right?  We run for no one else but ourselves.

View of the US Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD, from the top of the Severn Bridge

(Well, and a view like this doesn't hurt, either...)

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