And so it began

I don't know why it was different this time, it just was I persevered and was going out 3 or 4 times a week running a bit walking alot, but covering about 3 miles according to my pedometer. My pedometer probably had a lot to do with it actually because it enabled me to be competitive with myself, trying to complete regular routes faster than the last time. In March 2007, a friend told me about The Race For Life, its 5km she said. I looked it up on the Internet and found that there would be one in May at Lightwater Valley, I entered. Now I really had something to work towards. I persevered and eventually completed a whole mile of running without stopping, then 2 miles and finally 3. I got people at work to sponsor me and had sponsors of £160.oo . The day arrived, I was really nervous, What if I couldn't run it all, would people laugh? People, would see me running, I normally run in the morning not the evening after a days work. I was starting to panic. I was on my own at the race everyone else seemed to be in groups, I felt so lonely. Soon it was time to make our way to the start, I felt sick but I had to do it People had sponsored me and would ask the next day. I'd look stupid if I pulled out. We were off, we hadn't gone a hundred yards before people started to walk, what were they doing, get out of my way, why did they go with the runners and not the walkers, but soon I was free of the crowd, lungs and legs burning, but I wasnt going to stop. I wasn't fast, there were kids overtaking me, but I was doing it, I was racing and I wasn't last. I ran and ran and ran, I thought my heart would burst, in fact at about 2 1/2 miles there was a steep hill, I had to walk up it I really thought I'd have a heart attack if I ran it, but as soon as I was up it, off I ran again. As I entered the field with the finish line in it, I pushed for every last bit of energy, crossing the line in 29 mins 39 sec. I felt sick, I couldn't speak or hardly breathe. someone handed me a bag and a medal. A medal, I'd never had a medal I was so proud of myself, all around me people were congratulating each other and I wanted to cry, I felt so alone at that moment, in the middle of a crowded field with hundreds of people.