Back in the saddle again........

So I took a little teeny tiny break from blogging. Nine months to be exact. The last time I posted an update was after I completed the Route 66 Half Marathon last November (shame on me).

I just signed up for the 2014 Route 66 Half Marathon! I need to do this! I need to beat my time from last year. I need to run more of the route this time. I am in better shape this year and I refuse to let running get the best of me (easier said than done).

I took a long time off from running after the half marathon. Phrases like "never again" and "what was I thinking" were freely flowing from my mouth in the days after the race. I have only been that exhausted and in that much pain two other times in my life (I have two kids, so I don't really feel the need to explain any further). My knees were aching, my shins were sore, my quads and hamstrings were tight, and I could never imagine myself doing that again. Yet I just signed up to do it again.

Running is an addictive little thing. It's hard and it hurts and I cannot seem to make it through a single run without stopping to take a quick walking break. But I love it! I'm not sure why, but I do. It's like this thing that I cannot seem to conquer. I'm getting stronger and better at it, but I cannot seem to become the runner that I think I should be. That's so dumb, I know, but it's how I feel. I'm still fat and slow, but I'm running. I may take a break and walk for a quarter mile now and then, but I'm still running.

After the half marathon, I didn't run again for 7 months! That's a long "break" from running. It was more like quitting than a break. I just wasn't into it, especially through the winter. But in June I started thinking about Purple Stride coming up and how I really wanted to beat my 5k time from last year. And I knew that if I didn't start running again there was no way I would be able to complete a 5k by August 23rd without walking. This is important to me, I want to do my best, and this event holds a special place in my heart (miss you every day Mom). So I starting running again on July 8th, and I ran 18.6 miles in the month of July. I started out slow, only running a quarter mile and walking a quarter mile at a time. Now I'm running three quarters of a mile and walking a quarter mile. Progress is progress. I have 14.3 miles under my belt for the month of August. Purple Stride is next Saturday and I'm hoping to beat last years time (42 min 32 sec). I'm on track to beat that time, but I have yet to run that far without stopping to walk. It will be a true test once again. It is amazing how quickly the body falls out of running shape compared to how long it takes to build it up (so unfair)!

I was scheduled to do 3 miles today, but I only completed 2.25 miles. It was hot and I wasn't feeling well. It sucks to quit with only .75 miles to go, but I was D-O-N-E! But then again, 2.25 miles is better than 0 miles any day of the week (at least that's what I tell myself to feel better about being a big fat quitter). Now that I will be blogging again, all 5 of you who actually read this will help to hold me accountable to myself. =)

Quick shoutout to my friend Allen who is running today in his second Pikes Peak Marathon. You da man, albeit a crazy man!

Mind Over Matter