Hello running shoe's, I'm back: My first 5K run.

I love to run.

It makes me feel great. I'm happy to be blessed with good health with the help of a healthy mix of junk and health food (!), being drug free, and taking a daily vitamin that has kept me free of illness for the past 3 years- not even a simple cold.

I ran Cross Country in high school, which I loved to do until I suffered a knee injury at a baseball game during the CC season. The coaches decided then that I could stay on the team and train the other runners. It was fun, but I missed it dearly.



Shoot forward to August 16, 2006, and I'm invited to cheer on my younger sister as she ran and finished her first half-marathon (13 miles)- the Chicago Distance Classic. I was so inspired by her accomplishment, that I swore I would do that someday too- with her as my inspiration. My little sister has been through a lot in life, and to see her finish this on her own was simply breathtaking.

Last November, I signed up for a membership at Waukegan's new Field House at Hinkston Park with the hope of resurrecting my long-distance running abilities. My overall goal is to finish that marathon someday.

Here I am at the end of July, and after a brief (and unintentional) break from working out at the beginning of this year, I am at it full speed ahead. I'm currently covering 3 miles within a 30-minute period, which is pretty close to where I want to be. This past weekend I started mapping a route near my home for some real pavement running.

It was difficult at first because I didn't know how I would feel. For some reason, getting started went easier that I thought, perhaps due to my cross country training- but that was long ago. Now I'm starting fresh, and I'm feeling amazing.

Today I signed up for the Condell Distance Classic, which is being held on Sunday, September 16, in Libertyville, IL. I was being optimistic and thought I'd sign up for the 10k (6 miles), but opted for the 5K instead to get my feet wet with running in crowds again. I think it's a great goal to train for a 10K, but run the 5K instead.

For those of you reading this that are into that running/workout thing, come and join me! Sign ups are still being taken, and it should be fun.

Visit this website for all of the info and registration.

I'll post updates on my progress for sure.