When You Think Your 5K is a 10K

I have never been much of a runner. When we had to do those basic skills fitness tests in PE, I struggled with the mile run. I don't think I ever ran a mile in under 10 minutes. (Sit and reach was my jam, though. I used to push the marker off of the box. I was the queen of sit and reach.) But when one of my sorority sisters asked me to join her in a 5K around Athens, GA, I actually agreed.

I used to take an aerobics class, and I walked everywhere on campus. This was my first race, and while I knew I wouldn't take home any first place ribbons, I also felt like I would make it to the end just fine.

Was I ever wrong!

The day of the race, I came to the realization that

1.) I hadn't trained for this at all.

2.) Athens, Georgia is full of hills!

Now, I'm sure my sorority sister (who actually is a runner) meant well when she invited me to take part in such an endeavor. But reality set in when we reached a hill and she was able to dart up it while I was at the bottom calling at her to slow down. She looked back at me and shouted, "Come on!"

While it was one of the most exhausting situations of my life, I survived it. And while the free t-shirt I got from the race clearly says "5K," I have definitely told people that it was in college where I ran my first 10K. I'm not purposely lying. It's just that the journey from start to finish felt a lot longer than it actually was. And isn't that true for so many things in life? Aren't there times when we feel like we can't possibly get to the finish line...and then we do?

This year marked my 4th year of adult tap classes at The Dance Class. And just as in my first year, I can't imagine what my Thursday evenings would be like without this group of lovely ladies!

Adult tap - Such fun dancing to "Girls Like You."

It makes me so happy to see new members join our class and reconnect with returning members every September when classes start. Returning to the studio after summer break makes me think of my first year at the studio - when I came in with two friends uncertain of what I was getting into, uncertain if I'd ever get that flap hop, flap hop, flap, flap, flap hop combo right, uncertain of how I felt after my friends dropped out of the class. But that first year, I promised myself: "I'm not giving up. I'm gonna make it to that recital!" And I did.

Flash forward to year four, I couldn't imagine skipping tap class on Thursday nights, and I was looking forward to a recital! I was thrilled to see how much our class had grown, and I couldn't wait to learn a new routine. I had settled into a comfortable spot in this new hobby.

As we began learning the recital dance in January, that old image of standing at the bottom of a hill while my friend sprinted up returned. In my head, I began thinking, "That's a tricky combo...I have no idea where I am in the music...Adding in arm movements AND smiling, too? You've gotta be kidding me!" Every year prior, the muscle memory kicked in by May, which was plenty of time to make minor adjustments for a June recital. But this year, I found myself still flubbing at dress rehearsal! I have to admit I was feeling a little bit discouraged until someone looked at me and said, "Wait, wait...can you show me that move again?"

It was one of the new members of the class. Someone thought I knew what I was doing! As I walked her through some steps, it was magical seeing her face go from "I can't do it." to "I think I've got this." And just like that, not only did the steps feel like they were coming together, but I could also smile while doing it. It was a gentle reminder that sometimes all we need to get through a challenging race (or recital) is a vote of confidence and a nod of encouragement. Sometimes that encouragement comes in the form of taking a little extra time to teach the steps to someone, and sometimes it comes in the form of a sharp command from the top of a hill. The point is that whether you're about to step into a 5K or a 10K, once you reach a certain point, you realize that it's possible to make it all the way to the end.

I don't have a video of our dance to share here, but here's a photo of what I felt like trying to make it from one end of the stage to the other in 16 counts. It was like my own little recital night 5K :-)