It's about time

Hello to anyone who actually reads this:

I've decided I'm going to start a training log about my experience training for a marathon to raise money for cancer research and patient support.I really wish I had begun this earlier, when I first started toying with the idea several months ago. I was about 25 lbs overweight (using BMI as an indicator) and could hardly run a mile.

It's strange to think about not being physically able to run for more than ten minutes- now I run 3 miles on my "short" days and half marathons on my long ones.

I had just graduated college, and had an entire summer to reflect on the experience of the last five years. Although I obtained a degree (2 actually), and had become officially "educated," there was still a lot I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to contribute something more to the world. I also wanted to become physically fit- something I've struggled with my entire life.What I ended up deciding on was a way to achieve both goals: raise a significant amount of money for cancer research and patient support [contribution to the world] while training for a marathon [physically fit].

Now I've lost the weight (I'm officially healthy) and raised over $1000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, an organization that raises millions for cancer research and patient support.

I've found I love running. It's spiritual. It's meditative. It's a way to be more connected to the world around us- it's amazing the things you notice when running familiar streets as opposed to driving. The weather becomes much more important, so you notice it more. The world becomes a more beautiful place- I've seen so many more sunsets and rises since this whole thing started.

It's also hard. I won't lie. Next to recovering from major back surgery, it's the most physically challenging thing I've ever done. At times it has been painful- most things worth anything are sometimes painful. Of course, (and this is what I tell myself when I want to stop) it is nothing compared to the agony cancer patients go through every day.

As Lance Armstrong said, ""To race and suffer, that is hard, but that is not being laid out in a hospital bed in Indianapolis with a catheter hanging out of my chest, with platinum pumping into my veins, throwing up for 24 hours straight for five days. We have all heard the saying, 'What does not kill you makes you stronger,' and that is exactly it." And that, of course, is the whole reason I'm doing this.

Now for the shameless plug: If you'd like to help be a part of finding a cure for cancer, visit my website, http://www.active.com/donate/tntntx/tntntxsbrinke

Please donate- just $1 if that's all you have.

Be a part of the cure.