Boston Marathon

With my new inspiration to run comes a new appreciation for people who compete. I don't see myself ever running in a competitive race...maybe a 5K at the peak of my abilities. My body isn't made to run for long distances. My Hispanic curves were not meant to be shoved into tight materials, my torn up knees are already starting to scream as I pound down the pavement, but my determination to get better is strong. This is not a competitive thing for me, it's an opportunity for me to get some alone time...no busy children, or chores to be done. It is just me, my dog for the first half, my tunes, an open road, and time. I run my laps around the neighborhood in hopes that I can run more then walk in my 20-30 minute time allotment.

I am in absolute awe when I hear how quickly people can run long distances. Today was the Boston Marathon, a 26.2 mile run. Today's male runner, Kenya's Geoffrey Mutai, ran the race in a mere 2 hours, 3 minutes, 2 seconds. Now if I remember correctly, I barely ran my 1 mile in high school in less then 40 minutes. To think that this man's body was able to run that far in such a short amount of time is amazing to me. It just reminds me that the body and mind can do incredible things when pushed to their full capacity.

I had heard that you had to qualify in order to even be considered to run the Boston Marathon. This got me curious to see what these requirements were. In order to be one of the 25,000 people entered in the race, a women (ages 18-34) must run 26.2 miles in 3 hours and 40 minutes. WOW! That right there is something to be proud of and that's just to qualify to run.

My hat goes off to all the men and women who ran in today's race. Put your feet up, or take a warm bath, and relax...you have earned it.