live.life.Large

[We collect the best Running Stories from around Waterloo Region here every month. This is from Deirdre Large. Feel free to send yours in!]

I don’t think I could tell you the exact moment I finally felt like a runner. Most of us who run recreationally are always thinking, “When I’m first in my age group for my 10k,” “When I sign up for my first Half-Marathon” or “When I cross the finish line of my first Marathon,” then I’m a real runner. The reality is, the moment you put on those running shoes and attempt your first run – treadmill, road or trail – is the moment you are a runner. And we all have a story.

My story began with an injury. My youngest son is disabled and seven years ago, he was using a wheelchair and a walker. Handling mobility equipment and a 40lb child on a daily basis eventually led to a bulging disc in my neck. One of the suggestions from the physiotherapist was to find an activity that would help me get in better shape, strengthen my core, so I would be better able to care for my son. Running seemed to be the best fit for my schedule. Ten minutes a day on the treadmill turned into twenty, then thirty. Three months later, I was running regularly around my Waterloo neighbourhood.

I’ve never looked back.

What I didn’t understand at the time was just how much running enhances your life beyond the obvious physical benefits. For me, it has become a necessary stress reliever, a daily reminder to breathe and relax. For three years, I ran daily on my own, always outside, always with my ever-present iPod. I didn’t consider myself a real runner; I hadn’t contemplated racing, training or even running with other people.

A conversation over our breakfast table one morning changed all that.

My two older boys and my husband are basketball players. The topic of conversation that particular morning was “What constitutes an athlete?” They all play competitively on teams and consider themselves athletes. Apparently, I did not share that title. “You just run Mom, you don’t compete.” Not an athlete. Not backing down from a challenge, of course I announced I would train and run a race. My son Griffin informed me I would have to win it. What?!! They settled on placing top three in my age group. So in February, 2011, I ran my first competitive race – The “Re-Fridgee-Eighter” 8km race.

When Lloyd Schmidt called me up to get my medal that day, I didn’t move. My husband had to push me, “That’s you, go get it!” I was sure there was some mistake. “First Place Overall Masters Female, 8km.” Shock doesn’t even begin to describe it. [The results are right here.]

That race was my introduction to the Run Waterloo series and our amazing local running community. I’ve run many more of the series’ races, a number of them alongside my boys. I’m attempting my first full Marathon next year and seriously contemplating the challenge of the 7 stages of The ENDURrun. Running has helped me accomplish my original goal of building strength to help my son. But what it does for me these days is really very simple – it makes me happy.

And the Large boys still don’t call me an athlete. They call me a runner.

[You can read more on this story in Canadian Running Magazine, when Deirdre was featured in 2012.]