This is the awesome group of women I ran with this morning. This picture was taken AFTER our run. I can’t believe I’m still standing and smiling. Amazing! |
I’m so excited to be able to report that I stuck to my commitment to get up this morning to go running. Allow me to elaborate…me, I, Stacey Strickler got up at 5:45am on a SATURDAY morning to go RUNNING in the COLD. I still can’t believe I did it. Not only did I do it, but I’m looking forward to doing it again.
A few weeks ago I joined this Facebook group called Black Girls Run-Philly. The women in the group are very knowledgeable, supportive and encouraging. This was my first time meeting some of the women in the group, and I must say, I did not walk away disappointed. We met at 6:30 this morning, had our introductions and then stretched. We were paired up according to our pace, and then we hit the ground running!
I learned some new things as a result of my run today. The first thing is that it’s a totally different experience running outside in the cold than it is running on the treadmill. I’m going to have to find a way to do more outdoor running in order to get used to it.
Next, I need to learn how to pace myself. In my excitement about running with a group, I took off faster than I should have and wore myself out a little beyond the 1/4 mile mark. From that point on I had to walk, because I was too winded and my legs were killing me. I was able to do a slow trot on the way back which I felt good about, but now I know the key for longevity is to start slow and pace myself.
I also learned that having someone to push you and to cheer you on is important. Thanks to my friend Deneen, who encouraged me to trot on the way back and to engage in conversation to keep my mind off of what I was doing and to gauge if I needed to slow down.
The group motto is “No Girl Left Behind”. I LOVE that! And it’s not just a motto they put that thing into action. Our group leader Jocelyn, my friends Traci and Deneen and a few others came back to run beside me as I was pulling up the rear. That was a emotional moment for me.
So, as I said, I’m looking forward to doing it again next week. This time I’ll know what to expect, and I will not only pace myself, but I will stretch more both before and after so that I don’t get the leg cramps that I got today in Zumba…oh yeah, did I mention not only did I run/walk for 3 miles this morning, Traci and I went to Zumba as well…BAMM!
Now before I get too carried away with my BAMM’s let me say that a sistah is T-I-R-E-D, but that’s okay because a sistah is also doing the darn thing!
[…] I mentioned the other day, running on the treadmill and running outside are two different beast, but 2 miles are two miles no […]