one step closer!

Finished another long run in this FREEZING cold weather! It looks like I'm one step closer to registration. (Guess I should check to make sure it's still open, then!) The run went so well today. Our group met for a crazy fast six and a half mile run and then another friend and I slowed things down a little for the remainder of the run. The plan called for six miles, but I decided to do nine because I missed a long run over the holidays. It probably doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, but it brings me comfort to know that I didn't go for the easy way out. I truly had no idea how fast we were running or about the mileage, so I figured that I at least needed to run for an hour and a half. And, since I slowed down for the last few miles, I decided to get in an hour and forty minutes. It was heavenly! Truthfully, I don't mind the cold. There's really no alternative in my mind to running in the cold. Sure, we have a treadmill, but I'm not disciplined enough to run nine miles on that machine. There's always the gym, right? But! It's just not the same as watching an amazing sunrise or spending time with my girlfriends.

So! I'm still feeling good! And this goal is really helping me get through these winter months. I'd like to say that I don't care about the marathon time, but that's a lie. I do. Though, I will be pretty estactic to cross that finish line in March. I think I can...It's slowly becoming a reality! Yay!

Still Holding On!

The weather is really brutal today- we have yet another wind advisory. Yuck!  I felt like this morning's run was a breaking point for the marathon training.  If I did it, I am still in the game.  If I bagged it and cut it short, it would be time to hang up the dream of a spring marathon.  Somehow or another, I ran at least twelve miles in this blustery, cold weather.  It was not a fast run, by any stretch.  I did it, though, which was half of the battle.  A girlfriend and I started out together and got in three miles, or so, before we were joined by another friend.  (The key to training for a marathon is accountability, which is where running friends come in VERY handy.) My initial partner peeled off around forty/fifty minutes, and then my other girlfriend and I ran for another hour, or so.  I ran her back to her car and then headed home, but before I could hang up my shoes, I had to get in a few solo miles by myself.  (Another key to marathoning:  If you're running the marathon solo, some of your miles should be solo-- especially the last few of a long run.  It provides preparation for those lonely, tough miles at the end.) 

As soon as I walked in the door, I was BAM!!!! back in Mommy/Wife mode.  Before I could even think about showering, I was whipping up a delicious breakfast for my hungry, half-way grumpy family.  And while I'm a teensy bit tired, (waking up at 4:30 will do that to you) I am experiencing that amazing runner's high that will last until I go to bed this evening.  (Third key to marathon training:  the long distance high!)

Right now I am a teensy bit worried about my heel.  It's hurting!  And these new shoes are not working for me, which is so annoying!  I feel like I'm running with weights on my feet by the end of a run. It's so aggravating to even contemplate the idea of buying a new pair of shoes so soon after Christmas.  I might have to, though.

SO! Provided the marathon doesn't close within the next two weeks, it looks like I'm going to sign up.  My plan is to run nine miles next Saturday and then fourteen the Saturday after that- if both runs go well and I don't have any back/leg issues, I'm in!  I just don't want to lose the money again, so I'm trying to hold off on registration until I am absolutely sure I have the time and energy for marathon number six. 

My lungs do not burn.

Even in the coldest of temperatures, my lungs do not burn when I run outside.  I think they used to when I was in middle school or high school?  (I've been running for so many years that I can't remember that time frame, but I remember that awful feeling.)  This morning a good friend and I planned a run with another girlfriend, completely disregarding the wind advisory.

We met around 5:15 to drive to our meeting place.  The wind was whipping the car around the interstate, but we continued on to the running start point.  Due to a myriad of reasons, we were late in meeting our friend.  Of course, this meant that our friend figured that we were not able to make out for a run this morning!  Even though neither one of us had any desire to run in the whipping wind, we got out and trudged along.  I think we ran a mile- if that!  The air was so, so, so cold and my lungs actually felt a... BURN?!  Very strange. It's been YEARS, as I mentioned, since I've had a burning in my chest from running outside.

So.  Does all this mean I'm a wimp?  This burning nonsense?  Probably.  In the end, I figured there was no need to run four miles in freezing cold temps due to the wind chill; when I could just as easily run for an hour on the treadmill.  This marathon training really requires some dedication at this time of the year.