Tuesday, July 8, 2014

I'm a Late Bloomer

alt. titled...The Many Outfits of My Weekend
2nd alt. title...We All Have a Story

dress: Ann Taylor (here)
Mr. Hippie took these photos. I think we both need more practice-
him in photographing, and me in posing.

Can a girl have too many dresses?

source for the tri pics Rudy Malmquist

so, yes, I also wore this outfit this past weekend...

he passed me by in the last mile of the run. Took him that long to catch up, and then he left me in the dust.
I didn't think that was very gentlemanly of him. But I did forgive him.

so, triathlon suits are not the most flattering outfits in the world.
I mentioned that if we weren't married, the suits plus goggles and swim caps may have been a deal breaker...

I was a late bloomer, and I'm not talking puberty here. I was a late bloomer as far as getting my athletics on.

I started swimming laps when I was 19. I took me an hour to swim a mile.

I started running when LC was approaching her first birthday. Which means I was 29. Been running for 6 years now-minus 9 months to be pregnant with, deliver and recover from Meres.

I started bicycling last year. When I was 34. I had learned to ride a bike when I was a kid. But, I never did it much and certainly didn't love it.

This weekend I competed in my 3rd official triathlon. The whole thought of which still amazes me.

Triathlons are totally athletic events. Most people don't just up and do one. You really have to train a bit for it.

And I did. I trained. I competed. I completed.

A tri maybe would have made my bucket list. But, more, it would have made my "can't" list.

Do you have one of those lists?

I can't...

Cook. Read. Write. Run. Start my own business. Exercise. Get healthy. Get organized. Climb a mountain...

We all have our can't's and our own stories. Stories of triumph. Stories of pain and difficulties. Stories of failures. Stories of can't's and can's. Stories of where those two have met.

We are writing our stories. What's yours?

Mine is that I am a late bloomer. I am not the fastest runner or swimmer. And certainly not the fastest bicyclist. I have a 4 baby belly and wide feet. I have hip issues from carrying and pushing out a 10 pound 4 ounces baby. I have muscly shoulders and arms that look big in photos.  I have runner calves and I'm working on bikers thighs. I'm busty as all get out. I have the funkiest tan lines ever! I wish I was kidding. I have breathing issues-especially in the spring and fall, but definitely in the humidity. I get up early to train. I sweat it out day after day. I try and try again.

I am a woman. I am an athlete. I am a mother of four children. I am a wife. I am a business owner.

And I am inspired by other women. Other women with their own back stories. Other women who try and try again. Other women who are re-writing their own personal "can't" lists.

My sil, Renee. She started running last year. She ran off over 60 pounds. Which is amazing to me. Every time I see her, I am so proud of her. She runs 5Ks and 10Ks. And she gets a whole crowd of other women to run with her. She has inspired so many women, and I am so proud of her.

Lisa Pennington of Pennington Point. She totally re-wrote her narrative. I bet you this time last year she never would have pictured herself regularly running 5 miles having lost not much less than 100 pounds. She never would have pictured herself posting fun and beautiful photos to Instagram every day. Let's get moving and praising the Lord together. She inspires me everyday.

The girl in my neighborhood. I don't know her name. I know she is about a head shorter than me. I know she has the cutest long pony tail. And I know that if I get out on my run, I will see her. She will be starting her run or finishing it. Running up hill or down hill. Plugging along. Run after run. We exchange smiles and good mornings. And I think, "if she can be out here, so can I." That page of her story-whatever her story is-challenges me.

My mom. Who taught me to swim and insisted on swimming lessons at camp, when I would much rather been painting pottery and weaving bracelets. Who always has been a swimmer, but chose to reinvest in her own health by swimming laps again when she was almost 50.

The old man at the track. Who still runs miles every day even though he is in his 70s. Who ran our local 25K, 33 out of the 36 times it has been run. Wow! He inspires me.

My triathlon group. They slow down their own bike pace to help me with mine. They give me tips and share their knowledge. They've competed in and won many triathlons between them. And they are generous with their knowledge and experience. They express horror when I say that I pinch my tires to make sure they are full-not fill them regularly. They motivate me.

Andrea Snow and Laura Chinn. Friends of my sister, Bek. My friends. They started their own running journey a bit before I did. And (slightly competitive person that I am) I figured if they could run, so could I. Probably more than anyone else, these two girls were the ones whose journey prompted me to buy my first pair of running shoes. And to use them. Running. Andrea has run 2 long races with me. If she hadn't been willing to do them, I may have chickened out.

My sister Bek. She has run on and off the past few years. Between pregnancies. With a toddler and twins. Pregnant with number four. She doesn't give up. And that is a kick in the butt to me.

My husband and my kids. Their faces are the ones that propel me out of bed in the morning. Their faces are the ones I hope for and look for at the finish lines. They are a huge chunk of my story. And I am so grateful for them.

Whose story in inspiring you to change your story? (You should let them know.) What can't's are you turning into can's?