From Fat to 5K

Mother and Daughter Make the Resolution

By Jennifer Brown

As summer turned to fall and then winter, we began concentrating on pacing ourselves at the dinner table. Surprisingly, our ability to pace ourselves around the track got stronger. We began to run together as a two-man team – still admittedly miles behind the other girls – but dare I say we even began to like it a little? Before we knew it, we could run a whole mile without stopping or sobbing even once.

As January 1st drew near, the idea of a 5K crept into my head. For the first time in my life, I could realistically consider a distance run. Knowing how much better I would feel after dropping a few pounds, I was a quick sell. Paige, on the other hand, was not. It took prodding, but with some well-chosen words of encouragement, I got her on board my exercise wagon. And if it kills us – and I'm not entirely sure yet that it won't! – we will run this together.

Having made the big New Year's Eve announcement, our next step was to select the "perfect run." We did some research online that very night, and were surprised by how many choices we had. We thought about a zoo run just because it sounded cool to "run through the jungle." We considered the big city-wide marathon, which also offers a 5K option, because live bands play triumphant music along the route. Then we happened across the perfect race: the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation Race for the Cure. Eureka! A no-brainer.

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