My first blog post

After reading blogs about running for a few weeks now I have decided to start my own running blog. I don't know who will read it, or even how much I have to say, but you gotta start somewhere right?

Here's my story:

I am 29 years old, I have been married for 3.5 years and I have a 16 month old daughter who is the joy of my life! I live in the small town that I grew up in and, besides wanting a bigger house, couldn't be happier!

I was never a runner, ever. I was a dancer, a softball player, I also played soccer a bit. I was in ballet/jazz classes for years and then was on my high school dance team all 4 years. I started playing softball when I was 5 and played through high school. I was a pitcher so I didn't bat much and when I did the furthest I ever had to run was 90 feet to 1st base. To say I was slow was an understatement!

In college I played on a beer league, slow-pitch softball team but that was about the extent of my athletics at that time. When I met my husband we were both working in a restaurant and that became my career. I left that restaurant, but became a manager and spent the next 4 years working 60-70 hour weeks, that's not including my close to 2 hour daily commute. I was not exercising in any form at this point, unless you count being in 10 places at once in the restaurant.

When I had my daughter I had stopped working, I didn't gain much weight while I was pregnant and when I left the hospital with her, I weighed 15 lbs less than when I got pregnant. Don't get too jealous, 3 months later I was back up to my highest weight ever and just felt gross. I decided to join the YMCA and spent 2 months on the elliptical and lifting weights. I came across the Couch to 5K program and decided to try it.

The Couch to 5K program is wonderful and it was hard, but not so hard that I couldn't do it. It was motivating to see my progress and even though I still wasn't losing weight I felt better about myself and I knew that this time I was going to stick with it. Not only for myself, but for Maggie too. I wanted to teach her that exercise was important and being healthy is worth it.

My husband started C25K a month or two after me. He is doing awesome and has lost close to 70 lbs! I added weight watchers and I'm down 15 pounds. Back to the weight that I was when I left the hospital with my beautiful girl 16 months ago.

I'm not fast by any means, but I love running! I ran my first 5K 2 weeks ago and have another one planned next weekend. I ran 6 miles this past weekend and it's the furthest I have ever run in my life!!! I can see myself running a half marathon sometime in the future. My mom has made me promise to never run a marathon, right now I agree, but I have a feeling that that could change.

This got long, thanks for reading this far!