Random Sharing!

May 11, 2012

My original post was about recent dietary changes, but instead of talking about my new obsession green smoothies and tofu I decided to briefly share my experience at the Kentucky Derby Mini Marathon.

My mind has been all over the place and I really try to avoid taking you with me on that roller coaster, but I really needed to make sure my words were not going to be offensive to anyone. Since that is probably impossible, here it is, the abbreviated semi-organized representation of my thoughts…lol

On April 28, 2012 I ran my 2^nd half/mini marathon, The Kentucky Derby Festival Mini Marathon, in Louisville, KY. I was so excited about this because my parents and brothers were going to be in Louisville and I had a goal to beat my previous time…which I did by 3 minutes. What I was not expecting was the reaction to the shirt I wore for the race. The shirt I wore read “Black Girls Run!” on the front and on the back “Preserve the Sexy!” Now living in Atlanta, when wearing this shirt I receive positive support and comments from runners/walkers of all shades. However, in Louisville the story was a little different. For example, one chick named Amy approached me while we were running and asked, “what’s the big deal about black girls running, white girls run too?” Instead of getting mad, I decided to engage in a conversation with Amy about the significance of the shirt. Although I was fuming inside because of the delivery of her question, I simply found this as a teachable moment and shared a few things with her:

1.  Obesity is higher amongst African American women than it is for Caucasian women, so we are literally running for our lives.
2. There is a myth that black women don’t work out because of our hair.
3. Are you threatened by the fact that black women do run? She never answered…lol

By the end of the discussion she got really quiet and ran ahead of me. However, at the end of the race, I dusted her ass off and beat her across the finish line. My last remark to her was “black girls train too so we finish strong in the end!” BOOM!

Regardless of your race, you should incorporate some sort of physical activity into your day. It will help you feel better physically and mentally. I’m sure this is why I didn’t cuss Amy out…lol