Firecracker 5K - Long Time Coming

Steve, Dorian, me, and Isaac at the Finish Line. Dorian came in 76th out of 168 participants! So proud of him!!!!!

Just after finishing the Firecracker 5K.

I kept saying, "Are we last yet?" and Steve told me, "You won't be last, trust me." He was ready to come in last for me;)

Isaac loved the chance to get a free leg massage.

Dorian won a door prize: A Hibbett Sport bag. I won two box seat tickets to the Hickory Crawdads Baseball game next weekend.

Let me just tell you. Mike...this guy had nothing on you!!!

The weather couldn't be more perfect. Woke up at 5:15 am, ate my 12 almonds (the Biggest Loser Fitness Ridge breakfast of champions), and greased up with Body Glide. It felt like I was back at the Ridge. Except this time I was home, with my family, getting ready to do something that I had only dreamed about for years. Five years ago Steve and the boys ran their first 5K. I stood waiting and cheered them through the finish line. I would have probably had to get the paramedics to haul my happy hide back to the ambulance and to the ER had I attempted it myself. This time was different. This time I was ready. I probably couldn't run the whole thing, but I would darn sure try.

We got to the event and there was the sign up table with the most beautiful of all sights folded neatly on top. Event t-shirts. Now this may not sound like a huge deal to you, but for me this is a huge milestone. I could actually fit into these shirts. 44 lbs ago there wouldn't be a shirt on this table for me. As a matter of fact, I shopped at American Eagle Outfitters yesterday. I tried on clothes and there were actually some that were too big! I was so excited. So you see, this t-shirt would be special. I remember being behind a woman in Wal-Mart three years ago and saw her Firecracker 5K shirt. I remember how I had wanted to run that race with Isaac and I never made the training. It was a cool red, white, and blue tye dyed t-shirt. This shirt would symbolize freedom to me, in more ways than one.

We waited for what seemed like a eternity to start the race. Finally the whistle blew and we were off. We had to run down the hill from the Lenoir Aquatic Center and Recreation parking lot, across the street, and onto the Greenway. Because they had police officers at all the main road crossings, we let Dorian and Isaac go on their own. I was so proud of Dorian as he took off with the main lead group. I saw his little head disappear down the road. He turned around and slapped our hands in a rush back to the finish. There were 168 runners and he came in 76th. Isaac was just before us, then me, and Steve. I thought a lot about the last month in my head while I ran. Mantras kept me going. "Today we are going to play big, Why? Because you CAN and you are WORTH IT" "You get to climb a mountain?" "The only hard day was yesterday" "Breath through it, you've got this" "Keep it up, Keep it up" "Life is not happening to you, it's responding to you" "You are a rock star" "The only boundries we have are the ones we put up ourselves" These sayings kept me going at the Ridge. I memorized them and played them back over and over in my head to keep a positive thought process. Because, as I've said before; the one thing that can shut you down faster than anything is your own mind. It will tell you you can't, and you are weak, and you hurt, and can try again tomorrow. ALL LIES!!!! We have to retrain ourselves to think big so we can function big. Stop letting your mind lie to you and tell you things that just aren't true. If you listen to your mind you will be stuck in neutral and life will pass you by. I want to drag as many of you along with me as I possibly can. I have found the ultimate ride and I'm not getting off. Climb in, fasten your seatbelt, and lets throw it into gear. Let me know if you need a jumpstart, I'm just a comment away. WE CAN DO THIS TOGETHER!!! Oh and by the way, I will be signing up for my next 5K this week. It's in Morganton. Come run with me;)