I've decided that my latest mantra is every step a victory  because with each step I take running I am declaring a victory over congestive heart failure. That in no way implies that I am throwing caution to the wind (not that I wouldn't love to do that!) but that every step I take I can cherish as one more that keeps me ahead of the game. I hadn't run since the half on Sunday partly because I have been sore this time and partly because I didn't want to take a chance at overdoing it. One of the things I have planned into my marathon training is taking days off. Days following long runs and even harder runs I'll have scheduled off. I think this is necessary in order to protect myself from overdoing and getting myself in a bind again. So today I went out to grab a couple of easy miles and I did pretty good I think. I didn't try to go fast or hard, just enjoyed the sunshine on my skin and the fresh air in my face. The park behind my house is the perfect place to...

I am planning on pushing myself this week. I think i want to shoot for over 20 miles this week. And I do have a plan! My biggest obstacle from here is actually the hot weather. It's nearly 80 for the night time lows! And by the time I run around 8 in the morning it's usually 80 or above already. But I will win this thing!! While I was working on my technique for tackling longer runs last week I had a lot of thoughts... that's actually very normal for me no matter what I'm doing! I was thinking about how far out of reach the half-marathon feels right now. The pressure is that I have to complete it in under 2:45:00. My first was just under 3 hours.. so that's a little bit of pressure. I'm not sure the distance is the largest factor - my speed is. That's why I am really pushing for a higher base speed...  As I was running I was thinking about how tired I was etc...but because of the half marathon I have out in front of me I must keep pressing on! So my tho...