January 17, 2013
My name is Kristan. I am the President and Co-Founder of Tails of Courage. This blog post is going to be pretty personal but I feel it's time to step out and share my journey. Being an incredibly shy person this is not as easy as it may seem. Just write a blog post, about yourself and your most personal journey to recovery.....I assure you being bitten by a dog is easier for me!
In August, 2012 I received the most devastating news I could have imagined. While it did not involve a death of a loved one, it sure felt like it did. It brought me to my knees and upon reflection I still have not quite figured out how this pain does not kill us. Being a survivor of One World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 and having served aboard U.S. military vessels in several armed conflicts, AND having given birth to a 7 week early preemie baby, I know a few things about fighting to survive. The day I received my tragic news, I weighed 187 pounds and couldn't run so much as down my driveway, which was actually a quarter of a mile long, but the point being I was a pathetic mess. I won't share the specifics, because I believe we have all had the life altering moments from which we are not sure how to recover. I spent several days just trying to wrap my head around where my life would now go, the fate and future of the charity and the rescue and what would I tell the volunteers. I spoke at length with several of the charity program directors about what they wanted and instead of closing our doors, we decided to fling them wide open with abandon! Comically, I sat flipping through pages of friends on facebook to see what they had been up to the last decade, as I was not very facebook active, and what do we as society consider to be challenging ourselves to be better? I found several friends who were very active in triathlons. And so, having never having trained for a triathlon, having no idea how to train for a triathlon or a marathon and again, going back to the fact that I could not remember the last time I ran anywhere, we created Tails of Courage: Run Your Race and I registered for a triathlon - May 11, 2013 in Danbury, CT. I downloaded the app Couch 2 5K, bought a pair of running shoes, and set out on day 1. My preemie daughter is now 2 and I got my hands on a running stroller, strapped her in with some snacks and a sippy cup and away we went! Day 1 was a combination of walking and jogging (and wheezing) and every week an increase in running times and lengths. The next step, eat better. My family had been following the Primal Blueprint and Paleo Diets, so on board I hopped. Away with the sugar, the carbs, the processed foods, junk food, etc and hello vegetables and meats and fruits and nuts. As I was warned, the first few weeks I did get a little dizzy at times and my daughter was a bit confused as we cut way back on her hot dog and mac n cheese intake. My brothers began recommending training techniques and a few friends helped out with dragging me to Bikram Yoga classes and crossfit like training sessions (where I was sore for 3 days following). I am now 32 pounds lighter and still dropping weekly! I am pleased to say at this time I have gone from 5K to 10K training! I can swim the 1/4 mile required and the next step is bike work! I have the bike, and bought the child seat and helmet for the back to train together. And if it would ever stop snowing here I will get moving on it!
So what is the point of Run Your Race? It is a program under Tails of Courage to sponsor marathon runners, triathletes, awareness walks, hiking groups where the participants raise money for the charity. We will put together the donation pages for the athletes and provide the t-shirt to wear while competing. As a leader in this organization, I believe that if you are going to lead then do it by example. I am a survivor, I am a fighter, and as of May, 2013 I will be a triathlete! And I invite you to join me. Run, walk, crawl if needed, but get up and get moving. Never let the bad bring you down. This program is here to help and to motivate. Not sure what race might work for you, email me and I'll help you find something. runyourrace@tailsofcourage.org 877-63-TAILS Ext. 705.
To the entire Tails of Courage family, thank you for being there, for being supportive and Running the Race with me!
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