I did it!!!

Long Beach Pajama Run

I ran in a 5K last week! I made in under an hour which was an accomplishment. I cannot believe I did it! My legs were tired once I finally stopped but I wasn't too out of breath.

On Mondays, I run 3+ miles around the Claremont neighborhood. I didn't time myself today, but I think I ran faster and stronger. I wasn't able to finish in 3 miles though, which made me quite sad, but I ran faster.. I'm sure of it.

During today's run, three people "cheered" me on. Two rounded the corner and looked surprised to see me running- they both said great job. Then, when I got to mile 2, a guy on a bike said "good for you! nice evening for a workout!" I swear, either people are surprised to see a colored girl (or a colored girl in general) running or they're surprised to see a big girl covering the pavement. Maybe both. It makes me laugh and encourages me to keep going. I've read lots of articles that do not recommend people my size to run... they say you should do (light) cardio and weight training until you drop more pounds. Ah well.. as long as I don't hurt myself, I will continue to run. No excuses. And if I can run (or jog) carrying all 280 glorious pounds, then all these other skinny minnies weighing less than me can do the same. No excuses.

Lena and I are going to run a 5K in August so I have a month to shave at least three minutes from my last time. The goal will be under 53 minutes since I finished the Long Beach 5K in 57 minutes. Yay me!