I’ve returned to my old ways of starting and stopping the running… I made a very good “run” of three months before losing a running partner to injury (Hunt!!!!)  and generally falling to the cold winter months.  January brings new resolutions and new challenges.  This time, however, I want you to join me!  I’ve setup the following Google Spreadsheet and you can also find me on Runkeeper.  I’ll reconcile anyone’s mileage in Runkeeper on the spreadsheet.  What’s the goal here?  I want people to call me out when I start to fall off… I’m looking for a friendly challenge but also a group effort to keep each other running.

So, all that to say… here’s the rule.  You may join whenever but once your name is on the list you will be publicly challenged to keep going… we’ll all be checking! 🙂  So…who’s in?!

It’s May 1st and I’m signed up for the Collinsville 10k.  I have trained about 2o miles in the month of April…seems as good a time as any to get back on the horse!

For 32 years, the only time I ever ran was to the store to get a late night snack.  I still remember being forced to run around the track in Middle School trying to break a 12:00 mile.  Completely winded by the time I finished.  The thought of running in my 30’s never crossed my mind.  Then, after my second daughter was born, I just got to a point where I knew something had to change.  Slowly, I started running on the tread mill at my local YMCA, gradually increasing speed and distance.  Once treadmill running got old, I hit the pavement.  For the next few months I would go out for late night runs till I got up to about nine miles.  Then I figure it was time for an official 5k.  I signed up for a local one, which supported a local hospital where my daughters  were born.  Being an Orlando resident, I soon realized that Disney had their own set races.  I signed up for a 5k and then upped it to a Marathon relay (1/2 marathon for each).  It was an amazing experience.  I remember tearing up as I started my portion of the marathon.  It was something that I never thought would happen.   I then ran through three of Disney’s parks.  It was incredible running past all the iconic spots in Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot.  This started my love of RunDisney.  I have since completed 4 Full Marathons, 8 Half Marathons, 2 10k’s and a 4 day, 49 mile race.  Recently, I completed the Star Wars Dark Side Challenge which I will review in my next post.  I hope by writing my tales, it may show others that is never too late to run, and motivate me for my 5th Marathon next January.

I’m back at it!  I took the obligatory time off after straining the ‘ol achilles tendon and, I have to say, so far so good.  I had a 3 1/2 mile run on a beautiful Sunday afternoon where the typical January weather gave way to 50+ degree sunshine.  It wasn’t fast.  It wasn’t far.  What it was was a step toward continuing the journey.  

I feel a bit as if I’m writing as a recovering alcoholic but, truth is, I’m back on the bandwagon today and we’ll see how tomorrow goes 🙂

Ironically, I found an old iPod while cleaning yesterday….it started with “Enter Sandman” from Metallica and I was immediately brought back to the harsh competitive days of college athletics.  I pressed firmly and ran hard….the very next song?  “Much Too Young To Feel This Damn Old” by Garth Brooks… a laughable contrast and a gentle reminder to remember that I’m 36, not 18.

I’d like to blame my lack of posting on the fact that I’ve been running so much but the truth is, it’s been off-and-on since my last post.  I’ve settled into a 10-15 mile a week routine that has me making most of those miles up on Saturday and Sunday.  I’ve had some stiffness in the achilles that has me slightly concerned but mostly I fear I’m making excuses.  I’ve been getting 4-5 hours a sleep a night…and my achilles hurts.  It’s cold outside…and my achilles hurts.  I keep a close eye on the “injury” but I really should bump up to 20 miles…

The new goal for December will be to hit 20 miles in a week.  By late January, I’d like to settle into a consistent 20 miles a week, figuring that’ll be 3-5 miles with a few days off.  It won’t be amazing but hopefully enough to get me through these cold months and create a base for the Spring… we’ll see how it goes!

Time has not been on my side since we lost October and found ourselves square in the second-to-last month of the year.  I wanted to keep the blog (ah…see what I did there?) updated.  I’m happy to report that the 30 day trial was a success…. I didn’t make it the full 30 days (28 to be precise) because the half-marathon took a lot out of me!  I am indeed, not as young as I once was.

After a few days off though, I have returned.  The new focus is on weekly mileage…. I’m now allowing myself to explore the work/life balance.  You will see many fewer 11pm runs and longer runs.  The goal is to start with a 15 mile week and bump up by 10-20% each week depending on how I feel.

I am sad to report I tweaked my Achilles tendon yesterday after my last run…getting out of my car!  I’m keeping an eye on it and hoping it’s not too big a deal but will likely take today off.

So, there ya have it folks…Thanks to those of you who pressed me in texts and Facebook to write again.. it is helpful to air my successes and failures in a public forum where I invite ridicule… 🙂

A solid lesson I learned in college was, no matter how painful it might be, you need to get out and run the day after a race.  For me, Sundays in Geneseo, NY were nothing short of painful.  They’d typically last 8-10 miles and the acid levels in my body would almost always be dangerously high.  The lactic acid from the day before’s race and stomach acid from the night before’s excessive drinking.   No matter the hangover…no matter the leg pain… getting out and doing it again was very important.  It set the tone for the week and reminded you that there was life after “death.”

So, although I risk making this way over-dramatic, I got it done.  It was just over two miles and it was at a limping 12:41 pace.  I burned 347 calories which should clear me to eat exactly two pieces of candy.  It wasn’t pretty… it wasn’t pain-free and it wasn’t fun but it was necessary.