What have I done??????

I like to think I am normal.  Normal enough anyway. A suburban mum with 4 children, work in a kindergarten, hang out with my friends, go to the Melbourne Cup to frock up every year.

But I surprised myself...as it turns out, I may be less 'normal' than I thought.  Let's look at the events of the last 24 hours.

I had birthday money still, a gift from my parents and in laws. Now, I COULD have bought some new clothes, the cool pair of boots I saw at our local shops, any number of books for my kindle, had a spa day or thoroughly indulged myself.

I could have bought any of those things. But I didn't.

Instead I have signed up to run in The Age Run Melbourne half marathon (only 9 weeks away) and have put some cash aside to buy a running headlamp so I can run at night and should have a bit more for some workout clothes.

WHO IS THIS WOMAN?!!!

Ok, so I ran a half marathon over a year ago....and I swore never again. And that was AFTER a few MONTHS of training, not weeks. But, there is a difference.

I am stronger now. I KNOW I can do it.  Because the new strength I have is my stronger mindset.

My body knows what to do.  It is capable of the distance and the work. It was my mind that needed to building, the strengthening, the working out.

Doing weights for nearly the past year has helped focus my mind from can't to CAN. It strengthened the belief in myself. I was surprised each time I could lift heavier and heavier weights, or add more chinups when my head was saying " YOU CAN'T DO THAT, IT'S TOO HARD!" and my body just went ahead and did it anyway .

Who knew that every barbell I lifted my brain was too?

The other thing that has changed is that I have found a group of runners who are MEGA AWESOME ladies...the Western Warriors running group.  Running on Monday nights with them is becoming the highlight of my week. It still surprises me that I would willingly go out in single digit weather in the dark and run, when a NORMAL person would be curled up on the couch in the warm, hot chocolate in hand.

Running in a group means I am with a new kind of normal people,  there is always someone to run with me, someone to chat to, someone to laugh with.....and someone to celebrate with me when I complete my goals and people to celebrate with when they reach theirs. We run further than we would if we were by ourselves....and not notice it.

 Many of these Warrior Women are running in the same running festival that I signed up to....some are doing 10 k, some are doing the half marathon.  We are all different,  different ages, different careers, different families but with one thing in common.

WE RUN.

 

 One of the Warrior Women, Theresa, put this up on Facebook....and I think it sums us all up....those who run, those who walk, those who don't......to all those making a difference in their life in big ways and little ways.