titles - sigh - I don't have a good one...

Datura

Here is a retrospective of some florals from my yard that I've taken this summer. 

These photos have nothing to do with running but I will use this post to explain my running story. My sisters and I have been working on losing weight. We have a little thread on FB where we record our food, exercise, and weight loss and try to keep each other accountable. I had lost a little less than ten pounds by the time we finally stopped getting snow and cold weather. 

 

On occasion, I had been going out for a run. Once the weather was finally reasonable, I started running regularly. One morning, after my run (around the beginning of June) I suddenly got this idea that I needed to run a marathon. I had a strong feeling this idea was from God and that it might have something to do with my humility journey. 

I threw out my lambswool. I decided I would only run it if I could find a suitable marathon that was run on a Saturday (most marathon's around here are run on Sunday). There was only one and it was remote enough from June for me to have plenty of time to complete a training schedule.

I am terrified. I start feeling more comfortable and then something happens and I am terrified again. I have had two UTI's that make their presence known during the middle of a run. It turns out that the pounding of running will do that for some people. The doctor has prescribed a preventative supply of antibiotics. 

I am so scared that if I hadn't committed and shared this with close friends, I might decide to bail. Last Saturday, my run was 16 miles and it was brutal, my second UTI attacked during the run. I am not looking forward to this weekend's long run - I have knots in my stomach thinking about it. 

Because people ask, here is the answer to a common question. I am very, very, very slow, I will quite likely be last. My only gift in running is that I seem able to run indefinitely from the standpoint of breathing, oxygen, and muscle endurance. I struggle with some typical running problems (sore, weak IT band which results in a bad knee) and extremely bruised feet and occasional blisters. 

I do like how strong it makes me feel and I sing lots of hymn refrains and praise chorus in my mind during my runs (kind of an ongoing repetitive chant). If things are really bad, I find positive phrases to repeat such as "I am depending on God, He is carrying me."

I have a friend who grew up near the location of the race. She offered to let me stay with her at her Mom's the night before the race. Then she will watch the race to cheer for me and pray for me. I am very, very glad she offered. I wasn't looking forward to staying in a hotel with the girls when I know I will be impossibly nervous. 

I don't think there isn't much more to say about my running. It has definitely made it easier to lose weight. Enjoy the rest of the flower photos. Soon there will be posts of my projects from this summer.