TAG!

I Got Tagged!

Tagging is one way that bloggers connect with each other and each other's blogs. I was tagged by Donut. She's a cool person who does not like being called a Mom.

I thought it was a cool idea so, I have chosen to participate. You should too. Everyone's doin it.

Just sayin.

So, here are the rules of tagging: Tagging is easy. Just copy the following onto your post. The rules of the game are posted at the start of your blog post. In this case, I'm asking you 5 questions about running. Each player answers the 5 questions on their own blog. At the end of your post you tag 5 other people and post their names. Go to their blogs and leave a comment on their blogs telling them they've been tagged and to look at your blog for details. When they've answered the questions on their own blog, they come back to yours to tell you. Got that?So here goes:

1. How would you describe your running 10 years ago? Absent.

2. What is your best/worst running experience? My best running experience was the first race I ever ran: the Richmond Monument Avenue 10K. I had never run a race at all, and my first was a 10K. I couldn't believe I was even doing it. I am not an outside runner, had only run outside a handful of times before this, and it was POURING RAIN the whole time. I made it through the entire thing without walking a single step. I was so proud that I cried a little bit when I crossed the finish line. Hubby was sure he would beat me really bad as far as time was concerned. He didn't train AT ALL whereas I had done the C25K, the One Hour Runner program, and had been running for MONTHS getting ready for this thing. Turns out, he did it in right at an hour and I did it in 1:06:14. He's 6'3" and I'm 5'4" so you do the math.

Worst experience? So far, the Tar Heel Trot 5K exactly one week later. They don't call it Chapel Hill for nothing. And I had to poop in the middle of the race. Sorry, you asked. I still finished it in 40 minutes with the walking of the hills, the looking for the bathroom, and the poopage. Sorry. Again, you asked.

3. Why do you run? Well, when I started the whole WW thing I kept saying, "I've been working out RELIGIOUSLY for about 12 years. And I had. I used to do the whole weight lifting thing (my legs were killer) and aerobics and lots of walking. Then I got a job out of town and bought a BowFlex and a treadmill. I realized, reading everyone's posts on the message boards, that I actually was not working out to my fullest potential. I saw everyone talking about the C25K and I thought, "I can try that". It was hard at first. I was trying to run for speed, not endurance. I almost gave up. Thanks to the advice of my new friends I slowed down and amazed myself when I saw that I could last 30 minutes running. When I finished the C25K, I started the One Hour Runner. When I finished that, I was so proud. I was ready for the 10K. When I finished the 10K, I was even more amazed at myself. Now, it has become all about seeing what I can do next. How far can I go next? How long can I last next? And, to echo Donut, it's my "ME TIME". I don't get a lot of that.

I have a love/hate relationship with it. I find that I look forward to it all day....sometimes I dread it all day. When I start running, sometimes I hate it and sometimes I love it. Like the other day: I ran 4 miles like it was nothing. Then, on another day, I'll hate every single minute of it. I don't think I'll ever have another race experience like the first 10K. I've run 2 since then and wondered the whole time why I was doing it.

4. What is the best or worst piece of running advice that you've been given about running? The best piece of advice I ever got was to slow down. Stop running for speed and work on endurance. That has really worked for me. The speed comes later. It's all about lasting the whole time. That's hard when I'm in a race though. I always worry that I won't have "good time". Who cares, really?

5. Tell us something surprising about yourself that not many people would know. I can sing really well but I am too embarrassed to do it in front of people. However, when caught, I am always told "You can really sing!" The only time I'll do it in public is while drunk at karaoke. I paint, mostly on glass, like wine bottles or wine glasses or old candle jars (mostly stained glass) and I've written two books that are used here at the school where I work. I need to get them published but too lazy to do so.

Now, here is who I am tagging...1. Hope 2. Alb 3. Amber 4. Duckie 5. Ell

You're it!