Half Marathon or Bust

I first started running just after I got out of college. I wasn't athletic at all and the first few times out, just running a half mile kicked my butt. It took me several months to be able to run even two miles without sucking wind and feeling like I was going to collapse afterward.

That was...er...let's just say quite some time ago. Since then, I have run intermittently. At one point, about 10 years ago I ran consistently all summer and worked up to about 6 miles as my longest runs. That was great. Then I suffered a couple of knee injuries - unrelated to running - and have struggled to get back into a running habit since then.

Well, no more. I'm now going to get serious again - about running and about losing weight (I need to lose about 10-12 pounds). Last Saturday morning, I did an approx. two mile run. I was tired at the end, but it felt good. This morning, I did about 3 to 3.3 mile run. The weather was cooler and it felt great until the last 1/4 to 3/8 of a mile. But I stuck with it.

What still amazes me is how fast the endurance comes back. I have run only a handful of times in the last six months, and yet two runs in, and I'm back up to 3+ miles which was my standard run for so many years.

In order to keep myself motivated, I have set a goal of running in a half-marathon next summer. One of my bucket-list items is to run a full marathon - just to have done it - but I'm going to set that goal a bit farther out. I'll shoot for the half next summer and try to get in a few races between now and then. I'm not fast enough to be competitive with others. I just like atmosphere of races and I use them to try to achieve personal bests.

We'll see how it goes. Updates in the future...

Work-Out #1

Last night was my very first work-out on road to running the half marathon. Since I've found training logs to be motivational, I'll be using my blog to keep track of work-outs -- all my work-outs, not just the running ones.

So:

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Work-Out #1

Location: The local gym. It was 34 F outside, overcast, and damp. Not my ideal running weather.

Mileage: A little over two miles. Warmed up w/2 laps. Ran about a mile. Walked 2 laps. Ran about another mile. Then cooled down with 2 more laps. The second mile got pretty tough at the end. Legs were tired, lungs were OK. I really need new running shoes, though.

Duration: Oops, forgot to look at my watch.
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TKD is tonight. We'll see how my legs feel after that.

A New Plan

I've always done better at sticking to a work out plan when I'm training for a specific event. The last event I trained for was my second degree black belt test. I worked out pretty hard for six weeks, and although I did see some improvement in my cardiovascular fitness, I didn't see the numbers on the scale go down any.

Right now, I'm the heaviest I've ever been (about 176 give or take, depending upon the scale I use), and I'm tired of it. I still want to continue to improve my fitness and lose weight. So I need a new plan.

The other day, my yougest sister gave me a flyer for the 3rd annual local marathon, which also includes a half marathon and 5-K and will be held on July 12. A friend and I had talked two years ago about trying to run the half marathon. 13 miles is twice as far than either of us had ever run, but we figured we could easily do a combination of running and walking and still finish in the time allotted. And then nothing came of it.

This year is different. The half marathon is going to be my goal. I have five months to train, and I'm going to sign up for an inexpensive group training program offered by a local running group that starts in three weeks. The minimum run length, according to their web site, is 2 miles. I can get up to that in three weeks.

My ultimate goal will be to lose 20 pounds and finish the half-marathon in under 3 hours.