I took a couple weeks of rest after the last 5k I ran.  It did a number on my shins as I didn't train as well on the pavement as I needed to.  Running on the treadmill doesn't hurt my shins - pavement does.  I'm still keeping my stamina/endurance up so I can still run the distance, but I guess it's time to get back to training again.  The plan is to train the rest of the summer, run a 5k in the late summer, try a 10k somewhere, and then run a half marathon in November.  I think I can do it.  No wait, I know I can do it.  I doubted that I could run a 5k and proved myself wrong. Back in March when I was training, I essentially was running a 10k distance, so I know I can reach that mark within a couple months.

Injuries have a funny effect on you - they psych you out.  I run expecting an injury now, when before I ran carefree.  I guess I need to find a space in between mentally.

OK, here's the story: I've been running since January, ran my first 5k in March, suffered a setback with injuries and did a month of physical therapy, and just ran my second 5k.  Each time I run, I learn something new about the mechanics of my body, of what it lacks and what I need to improve on.  I am not a natural runner - I hated it during school back in the day.  In fact, all of my PE teachers had to put up with a lot when it came to me. I remember walking a mile, not even trying to run.  I remember refusing to participate in class.  It's not that I am not a natural runner, it's that I am not a natural athlete..or at least I thought I wasn't. 

In 2005, I found myself inching closer to 200 pounds.  I was on antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications. I avoided the mirror, I ate terrible food and slept far too much.  I decided that I needed to change that.  My mother died of colorectal cancer at the age of 53 in 2000, and her mother died of ovarian cancer at the age of 53.  I'm running an uphill battle - I know that cancer is written in my genes, so when and if I have to face it, I am going to be strong.  I found the athlete within me, the will to fight as hard as I can. 

Here I am in 2009, 60 pounds lighter, medication free, and doing things I never thought I would.  Not just running the 5Ks, but kickboxing, weight lifting, and spinning.  I go into class not embarassed or worried about what other people wil think. If I make a mistake, so what!  I'm having fun and getting healthier.

Fitness is a life decision - not just something you commit to, reach your goal, and then stop.  It's an everyday thing - we owe it to our bodies (and minds) to keep ourselves healthy.