I have week 1 of my Virtual Team in Training under my belt! WOOT!
Miles run: 8.01
We started out with our team conference call on the 30th, where we heard from Coach Joe, Julie (from the LLS), and Shannon (our fundraising mentor). It was an awesome call! I was actually shopping at Walmart with my daughter when I took the call, and there were several times I had to pull my cart over so I could laugh, and I even shed a few tears. I wanted to shout out about how excited I was to be part of something so amazing, but I think people already thought I was a little nuts.
On Sunday (1/31), I began my training with my first official run of 3 miles. Lisa was here visiting, so we took turns watching the kids so we could run alone. That 1st run, without a doubt, was my best run ever. Not just from a physical standpoint, but from a mental standpoint as well. All I could think about was how amazing this journey would be. I thought about Allie, I though about my Paw Paw, who was diagnosed with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia 2 years ago. I thought about everyone diagnosed with blood cancers, and cancer in general, who have to fight and endure chemotherapy, radiation, and the terrible side effects that come with treatment. I thought about Team Shrinking Jeans, all 18 of us, and what we’re doing. It’s HUGE. I thought about all the amazing support we’re receiving from the Sisterhood, and before I knew it, my 3 miles were done, and I wanted to keep running so I could think some more.
Although the weather was bad this past week, with lots of rain, and some flooding, amazingly enough, the sun was shining on the days of my runs. Perfect. The tempo run was the hardest, because you alternate between running at an easy pace, with running all out for 2 minutes at a time. You have to run at a pace you can maintain for the full 2 minutes, and that day I was running with the jogging stroller and Mia, so it was a little tricky, but I did it and felt a huge sense of accomplishment afterwards. I was also very sweaty and gross!
This week I will continue to follow my training schedule, and will even stop by the gym in Kerrville (which is 70 miles away!) to look into buying a pass so I can visit once a week for some weight training. I also plan to finish up my fundraising letter and get it in the mail, because in addition to training, I have to raise $2900 and as a team, we will be raising $51,800 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
New iTunes downloads this week:
- Save the Last Dance – Michael Buble
- Empire State of Mind – Jay Z with Alicia Keys
- Lean on Me – Bill Withers
Songs that gave me what I needed this week:
- Lose Yourself – Eminem