That's what my body (and my schedule) have been screaming at me ever since I decided to put October 14, 2012 on my calendar. It's a full marathon in Wichita, Kansas. I think I want to make it my first. BUT - (my "but" always gets in my way!) -- it's only about 12 weeks away. I have only run 13.1 miles as my longest runs ever - all of those in half marathons. Not feeling prepared here... But I have to do two things - decide not to do the full marathon this fall... or suck it up and run! I struggle because it's hot... or I can't run outside since it's hot - which means putting the miles on the treadmill... did I mention I have a love\hate relationship with the treadmill? I love it because it means I can make my goals whether or not I get to go out to run... but I hate running on in as it's boring and provides no escape like outdoor running does! But - I must remember that despite lack of convenience, overbooked schedules, too much work and stre...

I really prefer to run outside even though I have a treadmill. It just feels a lot more profitable to run outside - same miles but a totally different feel. It also gets me out of the house a little bit which is very necessary for me. But some days the aide doesn't show up which means that I can't run outside and if I am going to run it'll have to be on the dreadmill! Not long ago I got really frustrated with myself. I was doing a 5K at the OKC zoo. It was for Limbs for Life. I did terrible. I got third place in my age group but I did not perform well at all. It took me forever and I felt like I was dragging. I blamed it on lack of training and not keeping my miles up.I think really there were other factors - but that's what I blamed it on anyway. Well, I made some life changing decisions during that run as I began to ask myself some probing questions. I asked what's your problem?  And why aren't you training properly? I also asked myself if I really wanted t...

I have been running for three years now and actually next week will be the third anniversary of my very first 5K - runners you know the one when running gets in your blood? Yeah, that one! Well, this spring I did three half marathons in 72 days and I think I am finally ready to go for the full marathon. My goal is next April's OKC Memorial Marathon. I've done four half marathons now and will probably do a couple more this fall if I can find them in my area. Mentally I have already begun training. This means I really have to change up my diet and training schedule. I pretty well live in that mode anyway but tackling a marathon seems way out there for me and so I have to make a few adjustments. I hope to keep up this blog and share my training triumphs and woes. One thing I have noticed already is that it is difficult to work on everything all at once. When I started adding miles to prepare for half marathons, my speed suffered. It's a whole different mentality altogether. ...

So - I am in the middle of training for this year's half marathon. I was planning on doing another one this fall. I have been doing 2 races a month. Actually, last week I did my 3rd 10K and set a new PR. (Don't get too excited, I still came in 4th in my age group and still took forever!) I had another 5K planned for 2 weeks down the road. Then, a friend found an inaugural race this coming weekend. It's a 5K and a half marathon. We signed up for the 5k; and I was happy! Then she sends me a text and asks if I want to upgrade to the half. Well, you know I just couldn't leave that thought alone. But I have only done 8 miles twice since I broke my knee cap last August. I'm trying to slowly build up and still have several weeks until the scheduled half...but we just couldn't leave it alone.. so finally she had someone flip a coin and we won a half marathon! So now we have upgraded our status to the half come Sunday... What? I feel so ill prepared... but I oddly so...

I just finished running my 25th race. That makes me a silver racer...lol. It just worked out to be my third 10K. Overall I have done the 3 10K's, one 5-mile run, one half marathon and 20 5K's. I think it's finally becoming second nature for me. The lifestyle of a runner is gaining on me and I have more races already scheduled. Right now I am trying to do two each month. That's as long as I can manage it. This 10K had a very different element about it. You see about 2 weeks ago I started having some pain in my left foot. After some research I am pretty certain it is metatarsalgia. It's common to runners who are adding too many miles too fast. Yup, that's pretty much what I did. So in order to reach my half-marathon goal I have to scale back my training a little while at the same time increasing it. Sounds crazy doesn't it? Oh well - it's doable. I will spread my long runs out a little more and add shorter ones more frequently. The weird thing about this...

Okay - I know I am old and slow - and coming off a semi-major injury...but when I did the 5 miler in under an hour I was very happy with that. I actually had just a little over 11 minute miles. It felt like my work had paid off. I was still way behind the pack - but for me it was a good run! And by the way - the outside temperature was 19 degrees F.... just to finish this cold booger was quite a feat! The really cool thing is when I crawled back on the treadmill yesterday I realized my base time is faster. When I started running on the treadmill I stayed at 4 mph on slow runs. I had been working on it all this time and shot for some 5 mph and 6mph  speeds. Yesterday I did almost my whole 2 miles at 4.5 mph. I know that it not much - but sometimes we need to celebrate the small progresses we make. Today - take some time to celebrate some type of progress you have made. Maybe you have stayed on an eating plan for a day or two - celebrate your accomplishment! Some may have added d...

It sounds funny to say it, but the most difficult part of training is staying on track. If you relax for one day, the next day it is even easier to relax. It takes staying with the training program one day at a time. As I am preparing for the OKC Memorial Half Marathon I am having to really concentrate on staying focused. And the funny part is - it's something I actually want to do.  But I know that if I do not stay on track every single day (including rest days) I will still complete the half marathon - but not as easily as if I stay with my training program daily.  If it is difficult to be consistent with something that I actually want to do - think about how much more difficult it is to do things that have to be done - but that are not chosen. To get to any goal - it will take doing what each day requires. What are you struggling with today? Is it difficult because you are looking at the whole picture? I have to look at a whole 13.1 mile run to know how close I am to tha...

Well, I just finished running 6.6 miles. That's the longest distance I have completed since I busted my knee back in August. I must say it was not easy! I had done 5 miles last week, and that was pushing it. I guess my run today made me realize how out of shape I am. My body is not just talking to me right now - it's screaming that I have to get myself back in shape by eating right. I know I am eating out of pure emotions - but I gotta figure out how to stop doing that...it's not easy either! I sort through a lot of my thoughts while I am running. It really seems like it makes it go a lot faster and I get a lot of goals set for the coming days and weeks. (usually) In between I do have crazy thoughts about things like not spitting into the wind and fears that I won't make it back to the bathroom in time! But I get a lot of my emotions and thoughts all lined up and controllable.  6.6 miles - not too bad for an old lady I guess. It's a little better than half of ...

When I first started running, my son was in a nursing home in Bernice. I would get up early in the morning and go for a run so I could get back and get a shower before they started the patient showers. (yes, I literally stayed there with him!) So tonight, I ran it in my mind...but there's more to the story.  My own life is filled with much stress - just like everyone else! Part of my struggles means that I am limited to running on a treadmill and not outside. Did I mention yet that I hate  the treadmill? And running in the evening is even worse because I can't see out the window so I stare at the living room wall! This just makes it more of a struggle to get on the thing! lol!  Quite honestly, I get depressed and just want to quit! Imagine that! So I had stayed off for nearly a week... even though I already signed up for the half marathon for April. So I had to make a choice - am I going to be a runner, or not? If I want to be a runner, then I will have to make use o...

I know.. none of us like to really talk about goal setting. But this morning while I was beating out a couple of miles on the dreadmill I realized if I want to do the half marathon (that I have already signed up for) I'm going to have to set some realistic goals. It's never an easy task no matter what - but coming off a relatively major injury sure does seem to make it more difficult.  The funny thing is that I know I can run 13.1 miles - because I have done it~! But I also know that I cannot do that today! I hate starting all over! I am up to about 10 miles a week again since the injury that sidelined me for about 10 weeks this season. (frustrating --sigh) And you know what? I really did not want to get on that treadmill this morning! It's difficult because I really like to run outside. However, I do not have the privilege of doing so. That means that if I really want to do the half marathon in April I do not have the luxury of a choice! So I have to ask myself How b...