Goal Accomplished!

Near the end of last summer, my friend Erica and I decided to try out the couch to 5k program. We started strong but once we got about half way through, school started back and life got busy, and running in the evenings got knocked off of the agenda.

When spring break rolled around, I had a little extra free time and decided to spend some time that week exercising more, so I started it back up with Erica again. I set a goal for myself to be able to run for 3 miles with no walking before we left for Disney World. To be honest, I didn't think I would do it. I thought I'd try it for a few weeks, and when it got difficult, I would stop like last time. When I started jogging last summer, I hated it. I enjoyed the accomplishment and the time I got to spend visiting with Erica while we walked/jogged, but the actually running part, I dreaded every night. We kept consistent this time, and continued making progress each week.

During the middle of week 6, Erica sprained her ankle, and it would have been the perfect excuse to stop and wait for her to recover, but by then I was over half way through and running farther than I ever thought I could, so I kept going alone (Rhapsody took over as my running partner). Erica's ankle is healed now, and she's starting back running next week.

Well, all that to say that I'm proud to announce that last night Rhapsody and I successfully jogged for 3 miles and tonight we did 3.2 miles! I felt a great sense of accomplishment, and the exciting thing is I don't dread it anymore. It's still hard, but I have started to find myself looking forward to running in the afternoons. I don't think I'll ever be a marathon runner or anything, but I do think I'll be consistent at the shorter distances for awhile. My work is hosting a 5k fundraiser in June, and if Erica is up for it, after her injury setback we're thinking about running in it. I'm proud of the accomplishment and proud of Erica too. She's made it past the worst part, and has been a great encouragement for me to keep going. I'm thankful for friends who push me to better myself.