I love the race expo. It makes the upcoming event feel “real.” The months of training suddenly seem worth it. The expo gives me a little “buzz” of excitement. And today’s was extra-special. It was all about women. It was the Women’s Half Marathon expo.
You see, I believe we girls find it all too easy to take care of others at the expense of ourselves. Many of us are full time workers. Some juggle work and children. Some of us don’t work outside the home, but home school children. We deal with aging parents. We’re slammed, we’re stressed, we’re tired, and we don’t always take great care of ourselves. And then, from out of no where comes the idea: “I want to complete a half marathon.”
In my opinion the half marathon is achievable for many people. But it takes commitment to a consistent training plan. I choose to stay perpetually trained for this distance, so that means I run on days I’d rather stay in bed. I run when it’s hot and humid outside. I run when it’s cold. I run when it’s raining (ok, I use a treadmill, but I’m still running). This is my form of self care. Running is my sanctuary.
In the past few weeks I’ve noticed seeing more women running through the streets of Nashville. I’ve had a hunch that’s because our city was fortunate enough to have one of the Women’s Half Marathons scheduled here. All those women chose to set a goal, train for it, and then on Saturday enjoy the fruits of the labor. Today’s expo was the pre-party, the first celebration following months of sweat, blisters and sore muscles.
I hope Saturday’s first-timers come away with a marvelous feeling of accomplishment. I hope the rest of us don’t take for granted all we’ve done just to get to the starting line. I wish all 5,000 of us a fun event, regardless of finishing times.
We’ve earned it.
482gr8 