Kickoff to Training

On Saturday, the family and I went to the Team In Training kickoff event which kicks off the training season. I got to meet my marathon coach, Corrinne, who has run more than 10 marathons. I got to meet my “mentor” who was in the same boat I was 1 year ago…training to run her first marathon. I got to meet my team Rancho teammates who will be training with me over the next 5 months. I also got to meet my “honored teammate”, McKayla Wood.

McKayla is “6 and three-quarters” and has been diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL). She is a regular little girl like the kids I see on a daily basis at school. She enjoys ballet, Disneyland, swimming, riding her bike, and Sponge Bob. The only difference is that she is living with leukemia. She is the reason, along with thousands of other children, that I decided to train for my marathon with Team In Training.
Leukemia causes more deaths than any other cancer among children. Every 10 minutes, someone dies as a result of these cancers. Team in Training raises money for research, patient and parental support, and public health official education. If I can make a small difference, I am willing to do my part. I will be asking my friends and family to help as well in the near future.
As far as the training goes, I am a bit ahead of schedule. Kyle and I ran 7 miles on Friday morning. Okay, it was only 6.6, but close enough. I actually felt pretty good afterwards except for some chafing. (Okay, I know…t.m.i.) My first official run with Team In Training will be next Saturday and will only be 2 miles. I think I can handle it. Thank you all for your support. I look forward to really get into this training. No, seriously, I do! Ask me if I still enjoy it when my “warm up” is 10 miles, however!