20 years ago, I went from a totally non-runner to a half-hearted jogger. This was only because my husband really wanted his young bride to try his beloved sport. For the record, I was terrible at it. Oh, he tried to make it better by giving me pointers about how to hold my arms, point my feet — good tips, all.
But I hated it.
married for a year and managing the weight
Still, I was in decent shape (that particular shape being still decently slender), as proved by this photo taken 19-1/2 years ago.
Fast forward to 14+ years ago: I started running because I wanted to. I ran 2 miles, 3 days per week; usually I did this with 2 toddlers in the jogging stroller! Determined? Who, me??
I ran a 5K (Seattle’s Firecracker 5000).
I ran what I thought to be a 10K (Tacoma’s Sound-to-Narrows) that I now realize was 12K.
I ran in Spokane’s 12K Bloomsday Race, part of the annual Lilac Festival. Way back in 1994, I ran every single step of Bloomsday. I was still passing people near the finish line. I was so proud of myself! (Yes, I’m still glorying in that; why do you ask?)
Around that time, I looked like this. Not skinny, but healthy and in-shape. I could run, I could dance, I could keep up with my 2 little boys, and even carry them at the same time.
I did a lot of that.
That was 15 years ago.
Fast forward a few more years, and you get to this healthy specimen!
Otherwise known as the summer I could haul 100 pounds of kid with me on a bike ride
Dang, I’m proud of this! I know my husband likes it, too, because I had to dig through his own photo album to find it! I am so glad my neighbor took that photograph! I’d like to look like that again.
Emotional Eater, anyone?
I tend to put on weight when we move. As an Army familiy, moving happens every few years. It’s probably a result of emotional eating — getting the family settled into a new place, not having friends– same old story. Still, one year after that awesome-looking woman above? While I’d slipped a bit, I could still hike with my family, and I didn’t look too bad:
hiking in New Mexico, summer 1998
Nevermind the fact that the scanner makes everything show up in mirror image!
It's not just about my butt
What I do mind is that I now look like this…
Those vacation photos were pretty horrifying this year.
I want to change. I want to be different. I want to be HEALTHY!!
I’m hoping that the inspiration of Mrs. G –and the motivation of the fellow Derfwads– will get me there.
