In my school days I was one of the 'sporty' ones. I loved P.E and never had to worry about my weight or watching what I ate. Unfortunately when I left school I never pursued my love of hockey. I wasn't a very confident teenager and didn't believe I was good enough to play for a ladies team. Then life got in the way and all my exercise dropped off.
I would always wear baggy clothes but gradually those clothes started to get a little clingy. The penny dropped when I was in a changing room with mirrors all around showing each and every angle. Until then I was a bit blinkered and oblivious to the shape and size I had become. This was approximately 6 years ago.
Around that time a friend was signed up to do a "Race for Life" 5km and persuaded me to sign up too. We completed it in about 48 minutes and were chuffed to bits. I posted up on Facebook and one reply which has stuck with me forever was 'I could walk it faster'. That spurred me on to try and get myself fit again. I became pro-active and found a hockey team that were looking for new players, at this time I was in my mid 30's so had more confidence. I turned up to a training session but didn't feel very welcome. I also couldn't run. I pulled my quad as soon as I tried to run. I never returned. Back to square one. A few months down the line a friend was interested in playing hockey and had found a team in Runcorn who were looking for players. We were both made to feel very welcome. I was far from match fit and spent most of my time on the subs bench. I hated that so had to get fit and lose some weight. I set myself easy and manageable challenges. Something so simple as running up all stairs was a good start. I started to lose weight but was far from fit. I then tried to go for a 1 mile run. I hated every second of it. My head thumped, I could not work out how to breathe, my legs hurt and I focused on all of these things.
Over summer 3 years ago some of the hockey girls decided to start a running club, we downloaded a couch to 5k app and followed it. 3 years down the line I have completed 2 half marathons and rarely sit on the subs bench!
Keeping fit is now 1 of the most important things in my life. It keeps me happy and the friends I have around me are very much like minded. I still struggle to run on my own, it is definitely nicer and easier with friends. We run, we chat, we rant and we laugh! Oh and we also eat cake! I no longer worry about my weight. I feel good and know I am possibly the fittest I have ever been. Everyone who has helped me along the way know who they are. This blog could so easily have been a book. There are so many more things I could say. I truly believe we can all be fit and healthy.
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