Pursuit of Champions

As I write this blog, Austin is going to the last wrestling practice of the season. I have to say that I have been almost in tears multiple times thinking about this. Austin has participated in wrestling for the last three years, kindergarten, first and second grade. The first year was a lot of fun just watching him play around. Last year was even better as he competed in a lot of team tournaments and team events and had a really strong half Nelson which is what gave him a lot of wins. But then this year we decided to put him in a wrestling club, Pursuit of Champions with a strong commitment. He had two practices a week with this club and then went to once a week with the Byron Center team. He also had to weigh in on Friday nights typically 30 minutes away. And he competed in 8 MYWAY tournaments (all individual) on Sundays.   It was on these Friday nights that we ended up having family dinner after, which made for a nice weekly tradition.  Out of the 8 MYWAY tournaments Austin was able to achieve four second-place medals and three first-place metals.

 I remember the first, first place medal, Jason was at National Guard and I just didn’t think I would be able to take Austin without him. His coach was there and he was very clearly listening to his coach that day. I remember the feeling when he won and thought to myself I don’t care if he quits after today, we have made it to where we wanted. He had achieved the highest peak and I was on cloud nine and I could tell so was Austin. That day other dads and coaches were watching him, telling me how aggressive and strong he was. I never really saw Austin as 'aggressive'. Its hard to instill the grit factor in a young kid. But that day, he had it. 

The season continued to push Austin to work hard in fact, going into it he has always been a very poor sport when it comes to losing. There was a specific Sunday where Austin wasn’t feeling good and he was not on top of his game and despite after winning the first match he lost every match after that and would not speak or talk to anyone including his coach or us and continued to treat us poorly the rest of the day. We had a very big lesson to learn that day and it was a horrible Sunday filled with lots of tears, and poor behavior, but in the end it was worth it.  Austin was able to talk through his loss, recognizing that the next time he were to lose, he would change his actions and words. In between that time and his last tournament we went to Florida as a family and had one of the best vacations I’ve had thus far with the kids  After a full solid week off from wrestling and practices Austin went into his last two practices before his final tournament. Going into this last tournament I was trying to fill Austin’s head with lots of positivity and trying to get him ready to do his very best. That day it was very clear Austin was going to be on top of his game and we just kept telling him no matter what we love him and that he had done so well that season. Every time he got second place it seems like it was because of this one kid that seemed just slightly better than Austin., Going into this match I could tell Austin had it in him to beat this kid this day. And he did it. The very first match he pinned, then the next bout was against this 'better kid' and Austin actually won by major and it was amazing. Such a good feeling to not let the idea of someone or something scare you from overcoming.  The final match was still a tough one, but in the end, Austin took home 1st place. It felt awesome to have Jason there, since Jason was gone the other two times Austin took first because he was at national guard. 

I have found myself becoming emotional, as Austin spoke of being done with wrestling. Not just this season, but calling it quits. He found the new club to be challenging emotionally and physically. The last thing you want is to burn your kid out on something you think they love. 

I have come to love wrestling and all that it stands for. I knew nothing about this sport before Austin started. It is by far the most stressful sport to watch in my opinion. Watching your child have to go out, prove their strength and ability, completely alone. I found myself getting nervous the night before and becoming a wreck the day of the tournament. I didn't let Austin see or feel my nervous energy, but I couldn't imagine how  he felt.

So far he says that he's going to wrestle the team tournaments next year, but anytime we ask him about the club, he becomes tearful. Despite having learned more in just a few short months with this club, and pushing himself, he clearly didn't enjoy the extra challenge.

I came to love the coaches, the families, and watching the other kids. That last tournament of Austin's season, the club entered as a team to win one of the largest trophies I've seen. In this tournament, they take the top 10 scores from the team that day. Austin had the 2nd highest scoring points for his team and his club won the tournament with the most points.

I hope Austin continues wrestling at whatever level he enjoys, but I'm thankful for the time we had these years. I couldn't be more proud of him. Here are just a few pics from this season.

Here is Austin with Coach Dave after his last big win!

PIN!

Here he is taking down someone who always beat him, now it was his turn to take him down. the coach of this other kid says to me " he's (Austin) been practicin' huh?"

half is still strong! 

This year's pursuit team …. (mean muggin')

I could always spot him with the bright yellow shoes!

first place gets to take home the bracket !

wearing the Byron center singlet

Austin has never been a big kid, in fact always on the smaller size  but boy does he use his strength! he wrestled all season at the 52 pound weight class, in Novice.

Hopefully this won't be the end but glad he gave it his all while was in it!

First Ever Half Marathon: Gear

Every year, Team World Vision comes to our Church to talk about running and raising money for families and children in need of clean water in Africa. The video they play, gets me every time. I would have signed up years ago if it wasn't for a few different things that I just couldn't get past. 

One of them, was fear. 

"You hate running" 

"You have bad knees from years of cheerleading & gymnastics" 

"You haven't gone to the gym since college" 

"You have zero time" 

"You are already overcommitted" 

The first step, is raising your hand, getting more information, and honestly, signing up. 

When I watched that movie, I honestly couldn't believe the people that were now labeled "runners". They were all different shapes, sizes, and ages. If someone twice my age could do it, why couldn't I? 

The next step, is telling people. I remember coming home from church and walking outside to see one of the runners in my neighborhood. I walked right in front of her, making her slow down and stop her watch (which I now realize would have been SUPER annoying) and I said it out loud. " I signed up for a half marathon!!" 

She was thrilled for me. She said she would send me an invite to the neighborhood running club group and announced to the group that day, that I had excitedly signed up to run. There. I told someone. Then I told lots of someones. As many people as I could, because then it meant I was truly committed. 

Fast forward to my first days and weeks of training. 

Here is the gear that I love and have found most helpful for running my first ever half marathon. 

1) Shoes, good shoes. First I went to the local running store, Striders and was fit for Nike Pegasus. They fit and felt great. After hitting the road 5-6 times a week, my shins were in so much pain! I went back to the store and tried on lots more shoes and got more opinions. I left with Skechers GOrun Ride 7 running shoes. I honestly feel like these shoes propel me forward. They have a great cushion and an angle that keeps me leaning forward.

2) Flip Belt. I knew that I wanted my phone with me while running. I wanted to listen to music and use GPS. An avid runner & friend of mine told me about flip belt. I was sold. This belt is awesome! I would recommend trying on sizes in the store rather than just buying off amazon. I would have probably bought a small online but then I went in the store and realized the XS was nice and snug and I could barely feel I was wearing it. I also snagged the 6 oz water bottle that I store in the pouch on the flat of my back. They have two different size water bottles meant for & made for flip belt.

3) wireless headphones by Aftershokz. These are the most amazing headphones. They rest in front of your ears and use bone conduction to deliver sound. Meaning you don't have something plugged in to your ears. You can hear the music but also hear whats going on around you while running like passing cars. 

4) Music- the app called Rock my Run is amazing!! you don't need to pay for a membership but at just 25$ a year, it was well worth it to skip some commercials and have ability to play music to your steps/stride or to your heartrate. I absolutely love this app. It's all remixed songs and just about every playlist you can imagine. 

5) running app. I used Map my Run by under armour. It worked well with my apple watch and tracks lots of activities, maps out your run, and gives you updates for each mile including pace and split pace. 

6) a great headband - my head hates glasses, sunglasses, hats and headbands. almost immediate headaches for me. so I went with these nike tie headbands. These stay in place and are the most comfortable. Especially for someone who hates wearing headbands mainly because of discomfort. 

7) socks - these asics socks have great cushion and a higher heel tab. These you can definitely snag off amazon! 

8) compression socks - after my shins initially gave me some trouble, I found that these compression socks were very helpful. I ordered these off amazon after reading on a blog how much better they were than medical tape. For this price, it was well worth it even if I wasn't sure it would do the trick! I have worn on the left leg the entire training process.  

9) gummies - I haven't used many gummies during my running journey, but I did love the ease of these gatorade blocks. many people complain they are hard to open and eat but I just opened prior to the run and didn't ever have an issue. they fit perfect in my flip belt and taste great. I bought bulk off amazon. 

Less than 3 weeks and my first half marathon will be under my belt. Not only that, but I have raised over 3500$ for water for Africa. The cause itself is inspiring and has helped me change habits around our home regarding water. This will be my first ever race! I have never even run a 5K before but this training schedule kept me on track and helped me find a groove.

What's stopping you from doing something like this? I can tell you myself and people around me had their doubts but I hope to be testifying to people next year when time comes to sign up. To tell them, Yes, you can do this! No ones said it would be easy, but I can tell you that I have enjoyed it just as much as avid runners said I would. It's challenging and then some. I can't believe when I am talking to people now, I start talking about other races & different cities but the cause won't change.

Hope this helps someone out when considering your first ever half marathon. Shoot me a message if you have any questions!