Introducing the Running Manatee

I'm Amanda and I am rediscovering my love of running and all things active.  I was a three sport athelete in high school and ran track in college.  I taught special education for 12 years and am currently in my 13th year of coaching swimming.  It is now my full time job.  Manatees are my favorite animal of all times!

In July I lost my grandfather to cancer and while trying to find a way to deal with it I started running again.  It was just what I needed.  Having the running background I knew that I had to start with interval training to get back up to speed.  I found a wonderful program called Running Mate 5k. (http://runningmatemedia.com/) that helped me get back into 5k shape.  I ran my first 5k in a really long time in October.  It felt amazing!!!!!!  I ran two more 5ks in October and then another one in January.  My goal is to run at least one race per month.  I have a 3k coming up in February and I'm excited for that.

I have to be cautious with what I do as I had to have ankle reconstruction about 11 years ago.  5K is about the max I can do.  Since moving to Canada over a year ago I've had to learn to run on a treadmill.  I'm not a fan of that at all!  So I decided to split my running with the use of recumbent stationary bike.  That has been a life-saver to me.  It breaks my workout up and with all the New Year's resolution people right now taking the treadmills I am still able to get my cardio in.

I have also taken up belly dancing and will be starting yoga in another week or two.  When I can't get to the gym I will just use the Wii Fit to get some quick exercise into my day.

While I do have a weight loss goal, it is not my primary reason for exercising.  I found that I feel better and am better able to handle stress.  My husband, Mike, is super supportive and my biggest fan.  He is always at the finish line to take my picture and to give me a big hug.  My step-son James has made the comment that he wants to run a race with me sometime soon. I'm looking for one that falls on the weeks we have him.  He loves that we can make shirts and wear them for the races.

I just want to share my journey with others and hopefully get a few other people out there to join me in getting healthy and setting postive examples for the kids in our lives.