sole mates
Well, I did it. I took a leap of faith and I’m hoping I don’t come crashing down right on my rear end. Although I am a very self-motivated person and don’t necessarily need a race to train for to continue running (uh, hello, I ran all through my pregnancy without having something besides birth to train for), having a race on my calendar makes me really push myself to my limits.
I have an even bigger reason to train hard in 2012…
I am officially a Girls on the Run Sole Mate! I coached for GOTR last spring and absolutely loved everything about the program. Unfortunately, having a baby + a husband who coaches high school sports, I had to retire from coaching this wonderful program. However, I wanted to stay involved somehow. (I am still the site liason for my school, but unfortunately, we haven’t had enough interest to keep the program going.) The Sole Mates program provided me the perfect opportunity to stay involved with GOTR while still helping me reach my after-baby goals.
The Sole Mates program is a charity running program that helps raise money for the Girls on the Run program, specifically helping fund a girl’s “tuition” to participate in the program. Since I have coached in the past, I know just how much of an impact GOTR can have on a young girl’s life. The mission of Girls on the Run is to “inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using a fun, experience-based curriculum which creatively integrates running.” [source] As a PE teacher, runner, and now mom of a girl, how could I not absolutely LOVE this program?!
And now, I have the opportunity to raise money to help a girl go through the program as I train for my first big race of 2012.
On Sunday, April 15, I will be running my first half marathon post-baby (this will be my 4th-ish half marathon)! I had begun training for this race last year, but found out I was pregnant a few months before the race. Although I plan on running a few shorter races prior to the half, I am totally pumped for this one, and especially now that I will be running it for a good cause!
I would be simply thrilled if you would consider donating toward my goal to help support the Girls on the Run program. I would love for just one girl to have the opportunity to go through this wonderful program and I hope you can help me make the difference in a girl’s life as well!
What are your running/biking/exercise goals for the new year? Any other Sole Mates out there or are you running for another charity?