My mama. Some of you know her as Mary. Some of you know her as Mrs. Shannon. Some of you know her as Miss Mary. Some of you don't know her at all. But, I want to preface this post with a heartfelt THANK YOU to all of you who have shown us support as my mom has battled Stage 3 endometrial & uterine cancer.
As I look at myself & my life - there is no doubt that my mom has had a profound influence on where I am and what I'm doing.
With fitness: my mom was always active. She had numerous Jane Fonda & Joanie Greggains VHS tapes that she'd workout to all the time. And right by her side - me. I watched my mom workout and perhaps the most influential part is that she never made it seem like work. It was fun for her. Something she enjoyed doing. Something she enjoyed getting me involved with. She had a body that moved and she was thankful for it. Exercise was a privilege, not a chore. Thirty some years later, here I am. Fitness Coach & Fitness Instructor. I used to workout only when I could be alone. It was my "me time" where I just zone out. And yes, depending on the workout now, that's sometimes still the case. My kids would get bored watching mommy run on the treadmill for 5 miles. But, if it's a day where I'm popping in a DVD, I bring them into the room with me & encourage them to participate. I want to instill the same thoughts into their head that my mom did with me. Exercise is a privilege. A healthy body is not something to be taken for granted.
With my obsession with make up: this was something that also started at a very young age. My mama had a VHS from Lynda Carter - yes, Wonder Woman - called Secrets To The Perfect Make Up. I'm surprised I didn't wear that tape out. My mom would give me all of her old make up, put me in front of the TV with a mirror, let me watch the tape & do my thing. She'd let me experiment with all the different colors & try new things. If we were friends in elementary or middle school, there's a chance you did this video with me at a sleepover or on a Saturday afternoon. I'm not a very creative person - artistically speaking. But, when it came to make up - it always fascinated me. It was never about covering up flaws...it was always about bringing out & highlighting your best features. I could sit around all day in Sephora or Ulta and just play.
My mom has always supported me. When I told her I wanted to go to college as a Theater major, she supported me. When I wanted to switch my major from Theater to Nursing, she supported me. When I wanted to switch my major from Nursing to Business Management, she supported me. When I wanted to run a half marathon 6 months after giving birth to twins via c-section, she told me to go for it. When I told her I was going to become a Beachbody Coach, she was thrilled. No matter what I've done in life, no matter how sane or insane the choice I was making, she's always supported me.
And now it's my turn to show my mom some extra support - and you can join in too!!! Next month, I'm running my 3rd half marathon. Perhaps my craziest running decision to date because of the amount, or lack thereof, of training time & also the time of year. I don't like to go outside in the summer to get the mail, let alone run 13.1 miles. But, this race is about more than that. It's about doing something hard. Something that pushes me far outside of my comfort zone. It's about running those miles for my mama because I know she'd do the same for me.
As you probably know, my mom's cancer treatment over the past few months was successful. Earlier this year, she was declared cancer free. However, the doctors wanted her to go through another round of chemo just to make sure all of the cancer cells were gone. This round of chemo will be more intense. She will lose her hair this time & will feel more ill/rundown. This has not been a fun process for her to go through. She has her good days and her bad days. But I can't tell you how important all of your thoughts, prayers, cards, phone calls, texts, etc. have been to her. She's so encouraged by all of the love and support. Going through this second round of chemo isn't something she wants to do. But, she is doing it because we want her here.
She's now 76 years old. And other than this stupid cancer & a little arthritis, she's in fantastic shape. I will consider myself lucky if I'm in as good of shape at age 50 as she is at 76.
I've decided to start a little campaign called Miles For Mary & I encourage you all to get involved. This is all about getting up & moving. Getting as many people involved as possible. So, whether you're a runner, a walker or maybe you're taking a leisurely family stroll around the neighborhood, all I ask is that you take a picture during/after your walk/run and post it. If you're on Facebook, tag me in the post so that I can see the pic. If you're on Instagram, tag me in the post & use the hashtag #milesformary on the pic. I want to be able to show my mom all of the pics of everyone walking and running in her honor. I know this will bring such a huge smile to her face. I created a shirt with the #milesformary hashtag on it & I'll be wearing it during my half marathon next month. If you'd like to buy one too, you're more than welcome to! There are unisex t-shirts, ladies tank tops & youth t-shirts available.
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Thank you all again for your outpouring of support - it truly has been a blessing to us!!!
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