January 05, 2014

Teaser video

On Friday evening, after we had gotten home from visiting Mark, Jerry and I were sitting around and chatting in the living room. Eli came up to me and handed me a note that was all folded up. He does this sometimes when he wants to ask me if we can go out for ice cream, or walk to the corner store. As soon as I took the note, I was already thinking of how I was going to tell him no, we're not going out for ice cream today.

I unfolded it, and was surprised by what his note actually said:



I asked him why he wanted to go see Mark, and he said because he really liked visiting him. I kept thinking there had to be an ulterior motive, but Eli said that it made him feel good, he just wasn't sure why. My dad was planning to go visit Mark yesterday, so Eli ended up going along with him. I'm just so proud that he understands how important it is for us to visit, and that it makes him feel good to go see Mark. He's such a sweet kid.




Today was supposed to be my speed work day, but the thought of running repeats on the treadmill was dreadful. And since one of my goals for 2014 is to try and enjoy everything, I decided that I was going to do the opposite of speed work today. It was snowing really hard--big, fat, wet snow--and the plows hadn't even been out. The temp was about 30, which sounded fantastic for a leisurely, snowy run!

I wore my Garmin, but quickly gave up on it, because I decided to stop and take lots of pictures along the way. Also, I encountered not one, but FOUR unleashed dogs (not at the same time) who ran up and jumped on me, so I had to wait for the owners to put on their coats and shoes and come get their dogs. Running on the really wet snow was much harder than I anticipated, even while wearing my IceSpikes. The IceSpikes work great on ice and packed snow, but the really wet, loose snow is hard to run on.



I obviously wasn't worried about pace at all; I just wanted to run for enjoyment and see how pretty everything was! 





Isn't that gorgeous? I only ended up running a little over two miles, because my ankles were actually getting pretty tired from keeping my balance. I didn't realize how tiring it would be, but it felt similar to running in sand--you know that heavy feeling? I was pleasantly surprised to see I burned about 107 calories per mile, even though my pace was very slow! Usually I burn between 80-90. I'm sure it's because I was working so hard to run/hike through the snow.




Right around the time this post goes live, it will have been exactly one year since my From Fat to Finish Line Ragnar Relay team crossed the finish line in Key West. It certainly doesn't feel like it's been that long! If you've been following my blog for a while, then you know that the whole thing was filmed for an inspirational documentary. One of the producers, Angela, put together a short teaser video, and when I watched it, it got the tears rolling for sure!

When you watch this, keep in mind that everybody on our team had been significantly heavier at some point (our team lost a collective 1200 pounds), and none of us ever dreamed we'd be runners someday! 



I've probably watched it eight times, and I still cry each time ;)  I just feel like I'm bursting with pride for each person on that team, and how hard they'd worked to get there. Seeing how emotional this short clip made me, I can't even imagine watching the whole film! (The producers/film crew are still working hard on editing the video, and they are hoping that it will be ready for screening by spring).


If you missed yesterday's post about the Runs for Cookies Virtual 5K yesterday, make sure you check it out and sign up to run or walk "with" me on my birthday! :)

And don't forget, tomorrow is Motivational Monday! If you have a photo of a health/fitness accomplishment you'd like to share, you can e-mail it to me at SlimKatie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com with the subject "Motivational Monday" and a short description. I may include it on tomorrow's blog post!

17 comments:

  1. Well I got a good cry whether I wanted it or not! Your son is precious and I can't wait for the film to come out. What a great teaser! Oh and the snow is breathtaking... we are on pins and needles here in Georgia hoping for a dusting and a snow day.

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  2. What a great kid you have :)

    I teared up just watching the clip, too. You looked confident and great in every shot! I look forward to the finished product!!

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  3. That documentary is going to be amazing, I definitely teared up a little watching the teaser! Love the bit where you pass the guy! And your son sounds like a total sweetheart. :)

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  4. Great video! I love that shot of you right in the beginning starting out...and then finishing together! Very inspiring!

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  5. That video is amazing! I teared up watching it, I can't imagine how you must feel watching it! You are so inspiring!

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  6. What a sweet note. And that video, WOW! Can't wait to see it all. And just like you said, I'm bursting with pride for each person on that team! What inspiration!

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  7. Awesome preview, can't wait until the movie is out! I love the part where you mouth "watch this" and then pass the guy without a shirt, haha.

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  8. Katie, like other commenters, i too ended up crying through the entire video! I don't know if it's because I know your story as I've followed you from the beginning or if it's because you are all SO inspriational! I'm in the VERY early stages of weight loss after a significant gain after my transplant and am so inspired by you and your team...truly remarkable. You and your team should be so incredibly proud of your accomplishments and by how you've become role models to everyone...not just to people losing weight but to everyone who's working hard to attain personal goals, Incredible, truly incredible.

    Congrats to you and your team!!
    Bridgette

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  9. You have such a sweet boy :) I'm honestly envious of your GORGEOUS snowy weather! I totally teared up watching the video, and I can't imagine how emotional it must make you, knowing the story behind each person. I can't wait to see the whole video! It's very inspiring to those of us just starting our journey, to know that it IS possible to be there one day!

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  10. I can't wait to see the whole movie! What a great preview, thanks for sharing!

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  11. What a great preview - so exciting! And kudos to you for getting out there - we've had a tons of snow and ice and cold weather in Northeast Ohio lately and I have been sticking to my slow, short treadmill runs. I need to get some IceSpikes it seems - is that what you recommend? I've also heard good things about YakTrax - do you have a preference?
    - Melissa

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  12. Can't tell you how many times I've watched that video....and cried everytime. How wonderful to hear that your son asked to go back and see Mark. That is heart warming.

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  13. Ahhh! Can't wait till the full thing comes out!

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  14. Beautiful but it looks sooo cold!! I'm glad it doesn't snow here! I've freezing at 30 degrees lol.

    I watched the video clip on Facebook, so cool! I get wheepy watching heavier people run in races when I do them. I just want to give everyone a high five!

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  15. Wow---how inspirational is that video? INCREDIBLY! I want to go outside and run right now. Okay, maybe not. I know my knees wouldn't appreciate that. I did Leslie's new DVD: "Work It Off in 30 Days" Saturday and there is one short segment where she wants people to hop. I can't hop. Too hard on my knees, which are completely shot, but those knees still work for walking, so the total replacement is going to have to wait a while. There is also a cha-cha step she does, which involves two quick steps then three running-type steps (cha-cha-cha), and I can do that okay.

    In the RAGNAR video, I thought it was so great when one runner was running along with one of the girls (sorry I don't know everyone's name) who was obviously struggling and was walking. The girl who was trying to help, ran backwards in front of her for a moment than turned around and started running alongside her and got her back to the running pace. The comaraderie your team developed must have been so fantastic, especially considering everyone's similar background and how hard you had all worked to get to that point. I LOVED IT!

    I also loved Eli's note requesting another visit to Mark. What great kids you have. I was remembering the last visit when you literally had to wait hours for Mark to get back to his room, how patient your boys were and I think it's just wonderful that Eli wanted to go back again. I have a postcard for Mark sitting here that I'm going to put in the mail today, I already sent a card.

    Oh, I wanted to comment on your feelings about Mark eating "better" food, and wondering what was the point, since he's terminal. My husband is also terminal, he was diagnosed almost a year ago now (boy time flies!), with Stage IV Prostate Cancer, and the average life expectancy after this diagnosis is only 4 1/2 years. That is scary, but when we went to the Cancer Treatment Center, they suggested we eat NO processed meat, and cut back on red meat. Of course they push the fruits and veggies too, and even suggested he lose some weight. My thought at the time was, I've never seen anyone who's dying of cancer that is overweight. The weight loss will happen, and it won't be pretty, so why not just maintain his slightly overweight status right now? But we have changed our diet, we don't eat cured meats: bacon, sausage, etc. anymore, and try to limit our consumption of red meat. As the shopper, meal planner and cook, this is all up to me. I know it won't change my husband's terminal diagnosis, but if it keeps him here for one more minute with me, it will be worth it. I guess that's how you should look at Mark's situation. Eating better might keep him here a little bit longer. I hope so. God bless you and your family for stepping in to care about Mark, I'm so glad he has all of you.

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  16. That video totally made me cry too! I can't believe it's been a year since you all did that! How awesome :)

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  17. I love the teaser video! Made me cry a little bit too, and I don't even know most of them! :)

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