About Melissa

110lbs

Thanks for stopping by! Who am I? Well, I wasn’t always a blogging, crazy mother runner working her way to buff-ville. Somewhere in a land far, far away I was a skinny, late blooming nerd-tastic girl. I met my hubby shortly after high school and we’ve been married almost fourteen years now. Early on, we both loved to workout, and one of my first ‘real’ jobs after years in the restaurant biz, I worked at a fitness company. Actually, I went in to get information on becoming a certified trainer and ended up working for the company for three (or was it four?) years. Fast forward life, two kids, and lots of food & drink, and my vain ambition to become some amateur body builder was quickly replaced by stretch marks and everything but staying in shape.

Dec 2010 – 140lbs

That’s not true. Round is a shape. Fast forward even more years (let’s just jump right to 2010). The biggest workout I was getting involved holding my core in long enough to get the Spanx up. Hmmm, sausage suit anyone? Early 2011, I was struck with the reality that I weighed the same as I did a full nine months pregnant with my son. By this time, our son was getting ready to turn fifteen, so the whole baby fat logic wasn’t so logical. Not to mention our daughter was a freshman in high school and I can’t even begin to go into all the things teen girls have to deal with nowadays. Having a mother who grumbled about her weight and health was not an option. It took me a couple few months of trying to get it together to actually start getting it together. My first attempts at running were miserable and it was easy to come up with excuses between being asthmatic and super anemic (one doctor told me I could marinade myself in iron and it wouldn’t do me any good), not to mention busy – any woman that gets things done is busy, right?

As 2011 came to a close, I had dropped twenty pounds and it felt like I was finding myself again. It’s not even about being the girl who used to look for the guys she could out-lift, out-press, and out-last back in the day, but being the woman who is mentally strong, a role model worth following, and an example to the many eyes that are always watching. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us, and I will make the most of today.

Making the most of today means keeping my priorities in order. I love God because He first loved me. Priority number one is my family. I have a husband to love and honor that I don’t deserve; I have a son who will one day look for a wife and hopefully he will look for a woman like his mama; I have a daughter that I want to be a strong woman-strong enough to submit to the headship of the Lord and her husband. I work full time, and am humbled to find women willing to listen as I attempt to point them to Truth. Running, lifting, and staying fit are right up there. A sound mind and strong body are no longer negotiable. Do you have your priorities in order? Whatever consumes your time, resources, and heart – those are your priorities.

Fall 2012 – 120lb and Running It!

In the middle of the madness, I found that I have that itch to lift more than the boys at the gym and that I love to run. I don’t do it fast, and some days I don’t do it well. But that’s not stopping me. In May of 2012 I ran my first half marathon, and by October 2012 I was officially a marathoner. Why running? Because I was told I can’t. My doctor told me I should find something else active to do. Punching her in the face would have been active, but proving her wrong was a much better alternative. Tell me there is something I can’t do, and unless there’s a really good reason I should listen to you, I will prove you wrong. It’s something I never thought I could do, but I can do so much more than I thought. We are all running this race called life, and I am choosing to run it well. What drives me? It’s not all sarcasm and vanity, I promise. Two verses:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. - 1 Corinthians 9:24

…let us also lay aside every weight,  and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…  – Hebrews 12:1

I want to run the race before me - not anyone else’s – so when this life is done, I will know with confidence that I have fought the good fight and raced well. What about you?
It’s your life, are you running it? How can I help you run it?

*Standard disclaimer and all that: I am not a medical professional. I don’t even play one on TV. My opinions, jokes, and sarcasm are my own and not intended to do anything more for you than make you chuckle, maybe get you up and moving, and hopefully inspire you to make some changes. Good changes. See a doctor if you need actual medical advice, see me if you need a good laugh or someone to run slower than you.