Racing....who, me?

Hey, all of those years during junior high & high school...I dreaded PE (physical education) classes.  Not just because I was NOT athletic, but because I was overweight, too.  Yeah, those two things made any kind of sports difficult.  Along with that I was SO self conscious about the way I looked when I tried to participate in any sports.  All of those issues, along with low self esteem and being extremely introverted made PE not a fun place to be.

I am not looking for sympathy, at all.  That was simply who I was at that time in my life.  That person is so different from who I am now.  So different!  During those years after high school I began to break out of that "shell", thank goodness.  Gradually I became much more social and outgoing, made more friends and eventually met the wonderful man who is now my husband.  He has told me many times that when we first met, he could hardly get me to talk...but now I won't shut up!  I take that as a compliment!!!

All of this is leading up to (or back to) my weight.  About 6 months before I met my husband I finally decided it was time to lose weight.  I succeeded, but didn't do it the right way.  It was "dieting".  Just a way to get to my goal weight.  I didn't exercise.  I didn't think of it as changing my lifestyle, at all.
So.  Guess what happened?  That's right, I gradually regained the weight.

I repeated that process a few more times over the years.  Again, I didn't make changes for my "lifetime"  It was just dieting.  I've come to dislike that word.  Diet.

In 2013 I finally made the decision to make permanent changes to the way I eat and my activity level.  Major changes!   If you've just now started reading my blog, you can follow THIS LINK to read more about how and why I started.

Well, by now you're probably wondering if I'll ever get to the title of this post.  Racing.
It all goes back to the first few sentences of this post.  PE class.  Sports.  Physical activity.

If anyone had told me, all of those years ago, that I would now be participating in races...well I would have told them they were crazy.  Me?  Race?  Voluntarily, even!

Oh my, how my life has changed...in so many ways.  I am SO active now and I have been active since August of 2013.  You know what?  I now LOVE being active!    If you're one of my Facebook friends you also know that I like competing with myself, too.  Doing more steps and increasing the distance I walk, whenever I can.  Especially when I can walk outdoors.  Fresh air and sunshine.

But the point that I really want to make, is that I don't do these 5k races in the hopes of winning.  I know that I won't ever win a medal.  That's just fine with me.  I do it for a few reasons.
1. Being a part of that crowd of participants, all working toward that finish line.
2. The activity of speed walking is fun.
3. Trying my best to improve my time (minutes per mile).
4. The fun of doing a race with a friend or relative, even though we get separated during the race.
5. Seeing if I can pass a few other walkers along the way (I will admit that I like that!).
6  And, best of all....CROSSING THE FINISH LINE!

I did a 5k race today and I'm already looking forward to the next one.  Just 2 weeks away!

I hope that I am able to continue to walk 5k races (maybe a 10k occasionally) for many years to come.  Being active makes me feel so good.  Not just physically, but mentally and emotionally too.

Who knew, all those years ago, that I could and would make so many changes to my life?
What kind of changes have you made, that have surprised you?  Or, what kind of changes are you contemplating?   Anything is possible, you know.
Later,