Running is not my jam. I know. If you know me or have read some of my posts I played field hockey for 10 years. There was never a moment I enjoyed running in all of it. I walked off the hockey field my senior year and haven’t run since. Never once did I, or have I ever, run an *official* 5k.
But then, we at Greenlight Operation thought, “Hey let’s do a run for our Spring event!”
And I thought, “Maybe I should run this.“
Clearly I’m insane because insanity is doing the same thing over and over. But I think maybe because I’m not running for punishment, that helps. My sister-in-law, who lives 4 doors down, is training with me. Accountability helps. I’ve even been doing my Cassie Ho workouts in the morning and running in the afternoons.
We started last week. Our first run was freaking freezing. I couldn’t get my app to work. And we ran the very hilly neighborhood, which I was not prepared for. On Wednesday I ran the track at the college. All I will say is Mondo x 720 surface is trash. At about the 3/4mi mark my left MCL was very unhappy. I came home and KT Taped up. Thursday I did a morning work out, and Friday-Sunday was complete rest.
Today we did just shy of 2mi in the neighborhood again. It’s supposed to be high 60s low 70s later this week and we are so pumped for the warmer weather. My knee wasn’t a fan of the jogging but I pushed through and we didn’t do too shabby all things considered.
Copaiba & Deep Blue Rub are two of my absolute closest friends. I wouldn’t be physically functional without them. Foam rollers have been a life saver. I may cross the finish line with KT Tape holding me together, but at least I’ll finish.
But I’ll be real here for a moment. Why? Why am I running THIS race? 10 years of not running. Why now?
Because this race means something to me.
Greenlight Operation is raising money for our Restoration Home Project; a long term, holistic, care facility for women who have been victims of human trafficking. There are currently 6 similar homes in the state of Pennsylvania. Based on 2019 statistics of 540 reported cases of trafficking in PA, we need more like 30.
It’s sobering. The hole is immense. But it’s a hole we can help to start filling. We have made tremendous strides in our 3 short years. Realistically, we could find a house any day. It’s an awesome reality. But we need help to get there.
All things considered, I can hack some aches and the cold to do this. I will be adding “running” to my monthly updates and won’t bombard with running posts. But I’d love for you to follow along. Any tips or suggestions? Drop them for me. I need all of the help I can get.
The Nurtured Bee 