Happy 2023 everyone!! As I usually tend to do at the beginning of the year, I'm planning to provide more content on our OklaRoots website. Will this year be the year I can keep consistent posts?? Let's hope so! I plan to post more behind the scenes when it comes to sewing, running, mental health, and small business ownership. I may also, finally, post those "favorites" I keep promising. Favorite places to shop for all kinds of sewing items (although this list is fluid and changes all the time).

To kick off 2023 on the right foot, Babi and I did something BRAND NEW TO BOTH OF US! We participated in the RunDisney 5k, that took place over marathon weekend. If you remember, last year at this time I ran my very first marathon during this same event, and it was *magical*.

When I was a kid, I always thought we were either capable to play a sport, or not. If you weren't very good at the sport, felt uncomfortable, chaffed, got a stomach ache, experienced soreness, anything that was feeling great, it meant you shouldn't be doing that activity.  Even if I really enjoyed it, if it didn't feel euphoric in every moment, then it wasn't for me. So I started, and quit, a lot of sports. Tennis, volleyball, track, basketball. I loved playing those so much, but I wasn't good at any of them, I experienced side cramps quickly, dealt with chaffing and soreness, and I didn't see anyone else experience the same. In my eyes, everyone else playing could wear, eat, do anything and still feel 100%. I just wasn't meant to do those things. So I became a very experienced quitter. 

The questions I was asked the most when sharing my running journey on social media were "How do you know how to train? When do you run? How much do you run? Do you do other exercise as well?".

So let's break down the exercise portion of marathon training. I'll be honest, this is only part of the training. There's more than just becoming physically strong enough to do 26.2 miles. 

On July 27th, 2021, I signed up to run my first marathon. While sitting in a pirate themed restaurant in Legoland Florida, I obsessively debated with myself about whether or not this was an awful idea. Finally, the fear that the decision could be made for me if it sold out before I had the chance to book, pushed me over the edge, and I submitted the registration for Derek and I to run the Walt Disney World Marathon on January 9th, 2022. 26.2 miles of running (and walking) through all 4 parks at Disney World. The farthest I've run before this? 13.1 miles. 3 half marathons of the last 5 years, 1 of them great, 2 of them very not-great.