The day before leaving for Super Bowl, I decided to get one last workout in. As I jogged from the parking lot into the gym, I turned to look back and my foot awkwardly hit the curb. My ankle buckled beneath me. I hit the ground in agony and immediately knew something was wrong. I gathered myself and limped back to my car with no workout under my belt. Sigh!
My ankle immediately swelled, and by the time I returned home I could not see my ankle bone and was in a lot of pain. It was 7:30pm, I still needed to pack, and finish my preparations for the live podcast at Neiman Marcus on Super Bowl Sunday. Needless to say, I didn’t have time to feel sorry for myself. Ice and a compression sock were all I had time for. Nothing was gonna stop me from all the hard work I had endured making inSIDELINES come to pass this season.
Our first stop on Friday, was Off The Field Players Wives Fashion show. My ankle didn’t allow for heels, however, I didn’t let that stop me from feeling my best (thank goodness for cute sandals) and I made it to everything on my schedule. I was grateful for each experience including our first live podcast! Woop woop! The live podcast at Neiman Marcus turned out incredible! We were expecting 30-35 people that day and ended up with over 50 people in attendance. I wore my flats there and when I sat down in the chair I switched over to heels so that I could look the part. Wink! Wink! But I did not move from that chair because my ankle was throbbing!!
The support and love we received was incredible and got me through it all. Our husbands spoke on football and the evolution of their fashion. We also had models wearing the latest fashion trends and showing us some show stopper handbags. Finally, the fashionable Nina Thomas spoke about her journey through football and what fashion meant to her. Our amazing guests devoured the delicious chicken and waffles by the talented Chef Amaris and drank bubbles by the company brand Wifey! After the live podcast, we took pictures and soaked it all in. We made it through our rookie year of inSIDELINES! What.A.Day!!! I was so freakin grateful and proud!
When I returned home, my ankle had swelled up even more and began turning colors. So, I decided to practice self care and went to the doctor and found out I had fractured the outside of my ankle. He looked at me as if I was cray cray when I told him I had injured it a week ago! I explained to him that I had to work at Super Bowl didn’t have enough time to come in before I left. He said, “You walked around like this without support? You must have a high tolerance for pain!“
I thought about what he said when I left as I limped out in that unfashionable, big gray boot. I did feel ridiculous explaining my story to him. Maybe it’s because I was saying it out loud and had never done that before. However, in that moment I realized I was focused and committed to my goal. I wasn’t gonna let this ankle stop me from my first live podcast on Superbowl Sunday. I loved what I was doing and was going to see it through by any means necessary.
That’s when it dawned on me that this is the heart of a woman. We get ish done, no matter what! We are dedicated, we are resilient, we are committed and we are strong! We are fierce and we give our all. I know I gave my all that weekend and I am so proud that I pushed through. Fractured ankle and all, it was worth it! Lol! What I’m saying to you is, find something that you are fiery about. Find something that you would give your ALL to in order to see it succeed and go for it!! Don’t look back, don’t dwell on the hang ups, just stay the course and results will match your effort!
This is only the beginning for inSIDELINES. Season one is now in the books. We had our ups and downs, bumps and bruises, as well as twists and turns along the way. I learned more than I could have ever imagined and it was all worth it. I truly enjoyed fellowshipping with other women and sharing their journey inside the lines of football and I look forward to bringing you even more beautiful women that are a part of this game and want to share their journey as well. Season 2 is already on the horizon! Thanks so much for rocking with us and just know that our second year is gonna be bigger and better! Now back to game planning!
