Today is my one year anniversary of taking my health into my hands. I joined MyFitnessPal, trying to lose some weight to alleviate the plantar fasciitis that I had developed in hopes of being able to run again. I actually don't feel anything special about today. In fact, I didn't really want to post about it, but I think looking back I would like to know what was going through my head.
So what's going through my head? I'm on a journey, 1 year really isn't much of a milestone when you feel like you have changed your life and lifestyle and it will always be this way. It feels natural and right, like I am on the path I should be on. I took "before" and "after" pictures in a swimsuit but they don't feel like before and after. They feel like last year when I couldn't run and this year when I'm a runner. I can see the changes and strength in my body, but don't feel the need to share them. I've lost some pounds and inches, but more important than any of that, I feel fantastic, I feel driven and alive and I can run!
So, instead of stats about weightloss and measurement changes, here are a few pictures of how running has transformed my life. I wasn't actually able to run until August 3rd, but a year ago I started taking steps to making it happen and I am glad for that. That's what I feel the most joy about, the fact that a year ago I desperately wanted to be able to run...and now I AM RUNNING!
I'm proud of myself for taking my health to a place it's never been. Looking at a photo of myself at 24, I'm overwhelmed and happy that at 40 I look nearly as young as I did then!
The bottom line is that running has transformed me from the inside out. I feel like how I've always been on the inside shines on the outside now. This picture is my favorite recently because this is how I feel...colorful, strong, fun, happy, and sweaty! ;)
It's been a fantastic year with many more to come!
Bring on the mileage!!!
A friend just turned me on to your blog. I'm so inspired by you. I'm the daughter and sister of a marathoner and I just started my journey to becoming a runner. Please keep posting and congratulations!
ReplyDeleteWelcome Amanda! I'm so glad you are here! I'll keep posting if you keep commenting! I love comments! LOL :)
DeleteWow! You look fabulous! You are so right that you look so much younger now than you did at 24! Crazy how that happens! Keep up the great work :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Rachel!! :)
DeleteYou look absolutely fantastic Karen, inside and out! I love how adapting such a positive lifestyle causes us to look at the whole picture rather than focusing on how many inches we lost around our tummy. Great job!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Lauren, I think it really has made a difference, looking at the whole picture. My whole outlook is different!
DeleteYou look wonderful and oh so happy! I too am forty (and a Karen!) and have started running just a few weeks ago. Slow going but determined! I think the visual is far more inspirational than a number; kudos to you for not focusing on the number but on how you look and feel because of what you're doing. I came across your blog around the same time that I started running and love reading your posts. Great job!!!
ReplyDeleteHello Fellow-forty-Karen!!! ;) Determined is what you need! It gets easier and more fun the more you do it! Thanks for commenting!
DeleteCONGRATULATIONS! Happy Runiversary!! I've said it before and I'll say it 100 times more, you look fabulous, healthy and gorgeous! You are doing such an amazing job, keep up the good work! I love how honest you are and how you just put yourself out there, it helps heal anything that was once a burden. There are so many more like you and me, I'm so glad we have connected. :)
ReplyDeleteThis is the life, isn't it!? <3
Thanks Meg! <3 Ok, I had the urge to call you "Meggie" but refrained b/c it could be something you HATE!...I wonder if it's b/c I already call Ace by a nickname too! ;) I'm so glad we connected as well.
DeleteHahahaha I love it! My father is the only one who calls me Meggie so it has a good connotation to it. I don't mind it at all. :)
DeleteWhat a great year this has been for you! You look amazing! I'm so inspired by how passionate you are about your running and how much it has changed your life. :)
ReplyDeleteAwww, thanks Kim!
DeleteThose pictures are amazing and truly inspiring. Congratulations!! I'm very happy for you...and even though you weren't sure you wanted to write about your journey, I'm really glad that you did. Stories like yours keep me motivated. Good job!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jaime! I certainly never considered that I was inspiring anyone, but I appreciate you saying it! :)
DeleteGirl, you are rocking it and you look AWESOME!! You've done so well with your journey, great job!
ReplyDeleteThanks Karen!!!
DeleteI hope you realize what a great accomplishment it is that you've taken charge of your health and have become a runner. I think sometimes it's hard to see how far you've come and that's why anniversaries can be important to step back and remember where you were a year ago, 5 years ago, 10 years ago. Great job and thanks for sharing! You look great and you look like you FEEL great!
ReplyDeleteThanks April, running really has changed my whole life and how I feel!
DeleteYou forgot SEXY. How could you have forgotten SEXY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Laughing.
ReplyDeleteOMG Lisa, you are right! SEXY too!!! ;)
DeleteYou do look great Karen. And even though you are a year older in the 2013 picture, you do look younger than the previous year! I love the picture of you standing in the pond, it's just beautiful! Congrats on your journey to health and running!
ReplyDeleteWow lady, what a transformation. I'm not only talking about the pictures, even those are quite dramatic, but I'm talking about how you talk about yourself. You are optimistic and even if you encounter something that would normally make you sad, you talk about it in a way that is much more positive. The internal transformation is much more important as that changes everything and my dear, you are beautiful on the inside (and pretty darn cute on the outside too).
ReplyDeleteI'm proud of you and your journey and the continuation down the path you are walking. :)
Thank you so much Lena, that means a lot to me. Running has definitely changed me from the inside out! <3
DeleteYou look great! And you're totally right... you don't look anywhere near 40 - amazing! Feeling good about yourself and health shows on the outside, too! I am running the Princess Half next year and really looking forward to it. New follower to your blog :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Alicia and welcome!!! Too cool that we're both running the Princess!!!
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