My Big Fat Mouth

Ok, so I have a problem. I am one of those people who hate to be told they can’t do something.  With that said, I just wrote out a $500 check to my husband, post dated for July 4, 2012 and I’m sweating bullets trying to figure out if I have literally written a check my ass can’t cash. 

The Peachtree came and went.  The soreness came and (after an awesome massage) vanished.  The congrats floated in sporadically from co-workers and family members, but eventually that has died down too.  When it all settled to the bottom the only thing left floating at the top was my longing to do it again…but better. 

Finishing in 1:45 was a let down.  I should have, and could have, finished a lot sooner and last night I told my husband as much.  “I can do better,” I told my him. “I can run it in…..45 minutes if I trained right.”  (Why oh why did I ever open my big fat mouth? I was just throwing out a number really.  I wasn't stuck with that number until...) 

“Yea right!” he says. “Come on, there is no way you can finish—how long is it?”

“Six miles,” I said with my arms folded in total disbelief that he was actually saying I could not do it!

“Ok, there is no way you can finish 6 miles in 45 minutes.” He laughs, “I’ll give you some money on that one.”

“So, wait,” (damn…this is the part leading to the part where I should have kept my mouth shut), “are you telling me that I cannot run it in 45 minutes?  That is what you are saying to me right now? Seriously?”

“Yes. That is what I’m saying.”

“Fine…let’s bet then.” (Dummy…)

“Aiight, bet,” he says as he holds out his hand. 

(Here’s the part where I should have just shut up… I should have shut up prior to this point but as stated in the opening paragraph I have a problem with people saying what I can’t do) I slapped my hand in his and firmly shook it as I said, “$500. And when I do it in 45 minutes I want my check right there at the finish line.”

“Go ahead and write my check now then,” he said chuckling as he turned off the bedroom light.  I laid my head down and closed my eyes…that’s when the panic hit me.

I can’t possibly shave 1 whole hour off of my run time in…12 months!  Can I?  Whether it is humanly possibly or not, I am going to try my hardest.  I have a 3 step plan for aiding in my quest.  Step 1: train better.  Now that I know I can do the Peachtree, know the course and know how long it took—I can train much better than before.  Step 2:  get stronger and lighter. That is where strength training will come in.  The slimmer and stronger I am, the easier it will be to really move my body. My legs are strong so that is not an issue…it’s the rest of this body I’m worried about.  Step 3: run more.  The more I run, the better equipped I will be to really run the Peachtree.  So, I have some 5ks and 10ks in mind, spaced out far enough to negate any ‘overdoing it’ injuries. 

So, instead of pushing to do the Peachtree just to do it and say I did it, I am pushing to do it so I can cash a check for 500 big ones and get bragging rights for a while—unless I open my big fat mouth again.

The Runner