Going The Xxtra Mile - Kids Change Everything

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I have always liked exercising. In high school, I ran track, and I continued to run off and on through college. I decided in my mid-twenties to do some long distance races and finished three marathons, including the New York City Marathon, the Marine Corp Marathon in Washington, D.C. and the Chicago Marathon. At that point in my life, I had plenty of time to dedicate to training for a marathon. It was an incredible athletic challenge, and I felt good about myself despite my relatively average finishing times. Exercise had an important place in my life…and it changed once I had children.

Whoever said, “kids change everything,” certainly wasn’t kidding. Time became a precious commodity, and I couldn’t just take off and run for two hours anymore. In addition, my body took a beating during pregnancy and childbirth. I managed to get the weight off and stay fit with short gym workouts, but once I was back into pretty good shape, I was pregnant again. This happened three times and before I knew it six years had come and gone.

After my third child, I was thinking that our family was big enough. It was time to focus on me. My friend, neighbor and fellow blogger Margie, told me about the Danskin Triathlon, an all-women’s sprint triathlon that is a great race for first timers. I was intrigued, because this was a completely different challenge. Swim, bike and run, all things I could do, but I never put them all together. The sprint triathlon distances were short for each skill (1/2 mile swim, 12 mile bike, 3 mile run, but would add up to a nice intermediate length of time of exercising. I was convinced, and I signed up for the event in Sandy Hook, New Jersey.

I spent the summer getting ready for the race. I used some of fellow blogger Sally Edwards’ training plans, stuck to it, and by the middle of August I was ready and knew that I could at least finish the event. I had three weeks left to train prior to the race, and then the unexpected happened. I was out for a training run, and I turned my ankle on broken asphalt. I had broken my foot, which meant three weeks with my foot in a boot, and racing was out of the question. So much effort, so much disappointment.

I had to fall back on a lesson that I am always teaching my children. Sometimes you work hard, and don’t get the result you wanted or thought you deserved, but there is always next time.

It was a long recovery. It took six months for me to feel comfortable running on the road. I don’t know if I was just a slow healer, or if I was nervous about twisting my ankle again. Either way, I took it easy and took my time. I was contemplating whether to sign up for the next Danskin triathlon when the unexpected happened again. I was pregnant. Baby number four took me out of the race for the next two years. The race would continue to be an unfinished goal at least for a while.

An unfinished goal does not sit well with me, especially when I have emotionally decided to do something. It will fester within me until it is completed. It’s like a disorganized closet or the junk drawer that needs to be sorted out. It clutters the mind until it is completed. I would accomplish my goal and become a triathlete, and 2010 would be the year that happened.

I took training for this race a lot more seriously than I did the first time. I dusted off the old training schedules and looked at new training schedules. I spoke to women who had finished the race before, and recruited some friends to do the race with me. I spent close to nine months preparing for the day, because I wasn’t going to wonder if I was going to finish...I was going to finish.

Race day was an exciting day. My friends and I got to the transition area early. It was so early that it was still dark outside. The day was overcast and cool, but no one seemed to care. There was energy in the air. Thousands of women like me were ready to reach for their goal.

Both of my older kids volunteered to help out at the race. My daughter, Nicole, was one of the Swim Angels the Danskin crew had set up to manage the water. She was at the start and when the horn blew for my wave to take off I kissed her and in the water I went. The details of the actual race are a bit of a blur. The swim was easier than I thought it would be, the bike had a funky turn around, it took me a while to get into a groove with the run because my legs felt like lead coming off the bike. Overall, the course wasn’t difficult, and the distances were perfect given the training I did.

What I will remember most about the race was the finish. I remember seeing my family and hundreds of other people cheering me on as I came around the corner. I remember some crazy volunteer in a wig dancing around. She was getting the crowd going and congratulating the finishers. I remember my friend, Margie, the same friend who introduced me to the race years before. She was there to see me finally reach my goal. I remember my son, Andrew, who was helping out at finish line. He put the finisher’s medal around my neck. It was awesome.

My finish was memorable, and so were the finishes of my friends and the many other women who participated. I saw women in tears as they came across the finish line. They were completely amazed and overwhelmed at what they had just done. These were women who came in all shapes and sizes. Some of the participants were athletes, but I would say the majority were women who wanted to do something that was out of their normal comfort zone. As for my friends, they all finished and they were thrilled. They made my experience special and the training fun.

I have set a bunch of new goals for myself in 2011. One is to do the Sandy Hook, NJ Danskin Triathlon again. This year will be a little different. I will be doing it with my daughter, Nicole. She has never done a triathlon before, but she is a competitive swimmer. She is in excellent condition, and I am sure she will do great...and probably even beat me.

Isn’t it interesting that my first child took me away from my dedicated exercise, but now, years later I get to compete in triathlon with my child? Even though my kids changed everything over the years, they are now starting to change it again, and I couldn’t be happier about it.

Liz

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