It’s been four days since I completed my first 8K, and I’m still riding high.
I signed up for the Pacers St. Patrick’s Day race in Washington, D.C. to have something to train for as part of my fitness reboot (and to please my boot camp class instructors, Joann and Francine).
I’ve said it here before. I am not wired for running. When I started out four years ago as a means to reduce my risk of breast cancer recurrence, I couldn’t run ten minutes without stopping.
Though I eventually worked my way up to 30 minutes a day most days of the week, I only covered about three miles each time. I had never aspired to anything more than that.
The thought of running roughly five miles (farther than I had ever gone) with a boot camp instructor as my partner was pretty daunting.
How Younger Mentors Motivated Me
The Grass Roots Fitness goddesses planted the seed in my head to sign up for the race. Joann would be running it with me (and even cajoled me into running up and down parking garage stairs to increase my stamina). Francine helped by setting a faster pace than mine on training runs and chatting calmly while I sucked air beside her.
These women are both a few years younger than I (next month I turn 49), but I had even younger mentors who inspired me at a deeper level.
For the past decade, I’ve watched on the sidelines as my two sons (now 17 and 14) have competed in a number of sports between them, with travel soccer fully dominating our schedules at this point.
I’ve watched them grow and develop their skills on the field, and bring the same discipline to the rest of their lives.
I’ve seen them collapse with exhaustion after practices and games, have watched them go back for more with pulled muscles and sore backs. I even watched my older son continue to play after he slide tackled another player (cleanly, I might add), unaware that he had broken his wrist in the process.
Though different in so many respects, my sons share a capacity to dig deep when the going gets tough, to push harder, fix their mistakes, and reboot psychologically after an individual mistake or a team loss.
If they could push themselves that hard season after season, I could push myself a little bit for one race.
The Power of A Shamrock Skirt & Temporary Tattoos
Joann ordered her outfit for the race on the internet — a sparkly green skirt, glistening green arm sleeves, and wild argyle socks. She’s got about a half percent of body fat on her (see photo above), so the ruffled skirt could only look adorable on her.
I was too cheap and too conscious of my weight-carrying hips to order the same thing, so I went to the fabric store and spent $9.99 on shamrock fabric. I managed to piece together my own customized skirt, sans sparkles and gathers, but still looking the part.
The morning of the race, I learned where the real power would come from. I had bought a package of St. Patrick’s Day temporary tattoos and given half of them to Joann earlier that week.
As I held the wet washcloth against my shoulder to apply my first tattoo, I thought of my hair stylist. Lauren is a fair-skinned, raven-haired (currently with a few streaks of green), 20-something beauty who has turned a substantial percentage of her body into a canvass for intricate flora and fauna tattoos.
I had never been a fan of tattoos before, but getting to know Lauren, a deeply creative nature lover who honors her passions through body art, has made me a little less judgmental.
So when I peeled the backing off that first shamrock, I thought, “Wow. I get it!”
There was power in that tat that I never would have imagined.
I went on to cover my arms and calves with various shamrocks and leprechauns, and even got a little racy with clusters on my chest and neck. (Joann and I both had the same leprechaun on our back right shoulder, without even coordinating — there’s got to be some magic in that, don’t you think?)
In the End, Meditation Fueled the Finish
It was a spectacular day for the race — blue sky, bright sun reflecting off the city’s landmarks and the Capitol in the background, and just chilly enough to keep a hot flash-prone runner cool and comfortable.
Runners in green tutus, runners in green wigs, runners whose genders we couldn’t determine (we kept pace with one of these, whom we dubbed “Pat”), and lots of leprechaun hats made for great people watching.
I really wasn’t too tired until Joann told me we had just passed the four-mile marker.
She thought she was motivating me. But a voice in my head said:
“Four miles? You’ve gone four miles? You must be really tired!”
And guess what? I suddenly felt exhausted. It would have been funny if I hadn’t wanted to curl up in a ball right then and there.
It was time to pull out the big guns to put a lid on the brain blather.
I started counting my breaths as if I were meditating, releasing the fatigue and tension with each exhalation. Counting the in- and out-breaths in cycles of ten kept me going during that last mile, even when my brain was imploring me to stop.
As we crossed the finish line, I said to Joann, “I never want to run any farther than that–ever.”
I was tired, but not collapsing on the ground vomiting tired. It was just long enough to be challenging but still fun. And I even did pretty well time-wise, clocking in at 46:53, with an average pace of 9:26.
I took a minute just now to figure out the rest of the results. Out of 3,805 runners, I placed 1,737th. But if you just look at my division (women aged 45-49), I came in 37th out of 134.
It wasn’t a marathon (nor will it ever be), but I feel pretty great about the experience.
And the very best part? The text I got back from my 14-year-old (who was out of town for a soccer tournament) after I sent him the finish line photo:
Yay!! :)
Joann says
Martha – I laughed out loud as I read this…love your sense of humor! I got into those tats too! Plus you are way too generous with your compliments. You are an inspiration in so many ways! Just keep it up! Now on to swimming…who knows what’s next. Something tells me your race days are just beginning…..
Martha says
Thanks again for the encouragement, Joann. Can’t believe how much fun it was! But I feel exactly the same as I did at the finish line — I never want to run any farther than that. As for the swimming, looks like I may well sign up for that mini-tri with Francine in June (the run is only 1.5 miles — piece of cake!).
doris says
…and the swimming and cycling (I mean: what are the distances for those)??? Where will be the swimming taking place for this triathlon? (no, no I’m not joining – just curious :-) … but if I would be somewhere near you …. )
I am not a (regular) runner but I enjoy swimming very much as the pool is just available every day and I can swim a lot longer then before without getting breathless… never thought something like this will be possible….
and: You DO look very sporty and fit! I am sure any skirt would look perfect on you!
Martha says
Doris — you must fly over from Singapore to do this with me! It’s a mini triathlon, with the emphasis on MINI. The swimming leg is only 250 yards at an indoor pool (about 230 meters), the cycling part is 4 miles (about 6.5 km), and the running is only 1.5 miles. You’d have no problem completing it (maybe they have similar events there?) Glad you are swimming! That’s great! xxoo M.
Francine says
I think Joann is right. Seems like you’ve got some fun races in the near future to look forward to! It’s definitely race season. Looking fwd to getting ready for them with u!
Martha says
Thanks, Francine! Since I wrote “mini-tri” on the goals poster at class in January, I feel like I can’t turn back now!
Brian says
Great job Muffie!!! Does it ever make you wonder “Why haven’t I been doing this all along?”. Youth is truly wasted on the young :)
I’ve been swamped with work and a newborn so I’ve been semi-offline. I’m glad you liked my link to Andy. I’m a huge TED follower as so much of my life has revolved around all 3 of those letters in the acronym. HAHA! I just had a funny flash back to my graduation luau party. Can you guess the specific scenario of that event that made me laugh?
Martha says
Thanks, Brian! And congrats again on the new baby! Let me just say, I considered editing out your “Muffie” reference and replacing it with Martha, but anyone who has taken the time to reconnect with a childhood friend after more than 30 years has the right to yank my former self off the hanger and shake it out in the breeze. It’s a great exercise in my ongoing efforts to dissolve my ego. And no, I’m afraid I don’t remember the exact event from the luau graduation party. Would love a reminder (but let me know if you want to keep it private)! Finally, I owe you BIG time for turning me on to Andy Puddicombe and getsomeheadspace.com!
Bill Apablasa says
Congratulations! You should be proud of yourself! And I know it’s not about the time, but you killed it! Well done!
Martha says
Thanks Bill! Yes, I feel that I did, in fact, do better than anticipated. It felt good to set a physical goal and meet it (we don’t do that enough at this stage of our lives!). It was my 46:53 minute version of that mountain you climbed a while back! xxoo M.
Cheryl says
Martha-congrats!!! You are my inspiration a million times over. Ride that high as long as you can. It is an amazing feeling. Thank you as always for sharing your experience and your humor with us!!
Martha says
Thanks so much, Cheryl! That means a lot coming from a “real” runner like yourself! Good luck on your upcoming (and much much much longer race(s)!) xxoo M.
Mia Rose says
Martha, you must be so incredibly proud of yourself. And I love your strategy of counting your breaths as if you were meditating. Isn’t it amazing what we’re capable of if we set our minds to it?
Much love to you,
Mia xo
Martha says
Thanks, Mia! What’s been most striking is how much satisfaction I got out of pushing myself just a little bit farther. It didn’t have to be a great big goal (a half or full marathon). Just the exercise of setting a goal that went a little beyond my norm was enough to make it a great experience. I think it’s a lesson those of us going in to the second half of our lives can take to heart. xxoo M.
Judy Griffin says
I really appreciate your inspiring story Martha and I love the theme & the sparkly outfits. You look strong, happy, proud, fit, determined, joyful and youthful. Good for you coming in 37th in you age group. I am already 49 and doesn’t it feel good to own your age and feel like you can achieve whatever you put your mind to? That’s what keeps us young. Great to see that you made your sons proud as well.