When first thinking about my “proudest moment,” I automatically assumed I was going to write about running my first half-marathon. I had the post written in my head – the way I felt mile by mile, the moment I crossed finish line and while recovering.

But it wasn’t the half marathon that was my proudest moment. Yes, I finished the race, and yes – I ran the entire time. But there is a moment I’m even more proud of than the second my foot crossed the finish line. The moment I’m most proud of is when I went online, pulled out my credit card and signed up for the race itself.

A friend of mine told me about the race, and I said I’d “think about it for a while.” At the time, I was struggling with the idea of being a runner and, in fact, I had just written a post about how I felt like an “ex-runner.” I knew I hadn’t run regularly in years. And that’s why I didn’t sign up for the race when my friend first told me about it. How could I run a half marathon? I thought she couldn’t have known how little I was running.

One night, I was getting my apartment ready to host a birthday party for my boyfriend. Everything was ready, and I was waiting for friends to arrive. I started poking around the Pittsburgh Half Marathon site again, checking out the rules and regulations. I’m not sure what happened, but I reached for my purse. I pulled out my orange credit card and started pressing the numbers. My hand moved almost in autopilot, clicking this and that, typing in my address and age. Before I could give it any real thought, I entered the card number and pressed Submit. Just like that, I was signed up for a half marathon. Bill came over and asked what I was doing. “I just signed up for the half marathon,” I said, still staring at the screen. I even started laughing for a minute. I told my friends when they arrived at the party, and they were excited – but also surprised. I’ll admit, signing up for the half right before the party was completely random. And my friends must have wondered about my sanity since it was the first they’d heard me talk about running a race like that.

Even though that moment was so random, so unplanned, I think it was one of my proudest moments. Because that is the moment I decided to be a runner again. That was the moment I decided that I was going to do this. And without that moment, there wouldn’t have been months of training. Without the months of training, I wouldn’t have run that half marathon. And without that half marathon, I wouldn’t have pictures like these or this video to share. I wouldn’t be a runner again.

5 comments

1. fitnessnyc on July 1, 2009 11:46 PM

   wonderful series, beautiful story rose!

    
2. Val on July 2, 2009 2:07 AM

   Great job Rose!!! We have similar stories. I loved hearding about your journey. Happy running!

    
3. Amie on July 2, 2009 2:31 AM

   that's so funny! just today i was going to write in about my proud moment, signing up for my first half! like you i thought finishing would be the biggest thrill, but getting the guts just to make that goal was the biggest step i had taken in a long time and it felt awesome, scary, but awesome! congrats :)

    
4. A on July 2, 2009 9:39 AM

   I've read this story on Lobster's blog. Reading it again today was JUST as inspiring!! Hooray for reaching goals and achieving them!!!
   -A

    
5. Aimee on July 2, 2009 11:26 AM

   It is such a great feeling to finish a 1/2. I ran this race too, but Rose and I didn't get to meet. However, it felt good knowing another blogger was out there running with me!