Running Vegan

My daughter and I are running in the Disneyland Half Marathon in September. It's something she's wanted to do for a long time, but it was a total whim on my part. When she told me she was doing this, I jokingly said I ought to do it with her, and within an hour, I had signed up. To be clear, I am not a runner, and haven't done anything particularly physical in about 30 years. I've just never enjoyed or been able to stick with any kind of exercise habit as an adult, although I was active as a kid, and my body has suffered for it. But something has shifted now. I'm feeling younger...

Part of it is the whole healthy vegan lifestyle I've immersed myself in for the last two years. Exercise is another part of the equation, part of the natural flow. It makes sense, and I think it makes me much more credible when I encourage other people to change their diets and reclaim their health.

I'm actually a little bit surprised at how well it's going. I "run," which means run/walk, three times a week, all by myself, and I love it. I also walk with my husband three times a week, and on those days I go to a water aerobics class for some cross training. This is so unlike me, but I've been doing it since February, and have no intention of stopping. Ever. I'm losing weight, building muscle, and feel better than I have in many years. Why would I stop? At first the goal was to just finish the race, but now that goal has expanded and extended to finishing my entire Life Race with as much grace and energy as possible, and to make it last as long as possible. The middle of life, which is where I roughly am, if I live to be 100, which I intend to do, is no time to let it all fall apart. There's still too much to do.

My daughter Lauren and I have been writing a weekly co-blog over at TakingTheLongWayHome, under the heading, "Kim & Lauren," but I now feel it's time to move it to a new home here on PV. What I'm doing is certainly a personal adventure, which is what I usually write about over on LongWayHome. But more and more it's tied in with how I eat, and my growing philosophy on how I want to treat my body, and how I participate in life on Planet Earth. I'm convinced that I could not be doing all this exercise if I wasn't committed to a super healthy vegan diet. It's not at all weird that I'm a plant fueled runner. I'm able to run because I eat plants. I think this is a journey worth sharing here, along with the tasty recipes and helpful information I've been providing all along. I can say for sure, from my own ongoing experience, that if you want to change your life, your health, and your body, you can absolutely, happily, positively do it - at any age.

I'm not sure if we'll hear much from Lauren this summer, but I'll let her pop in and share her marathon training experiences when she has time. She's not vegan. She's mostly vegetarian. I'm working on her... and of course she's finding her own way, in her own time, on her own path. I can't wait till our paths cross in September, hers from Seattle, and mine from Taos, to stand at the starting line with Mickey Mouse, and to cross the finish line on my own two feet, because my girl has inspired me to get off my butt and get moving.