Running

In high school I ran track. I by 'ran' I mean the hurdles, not around the track. Just 100 meters. And to be honest I probably put as little effort into running as possible back then. I wasn't fast like a sprinter and I was lucky to make it a full 400 meters without completely killing myself, so I stuck to hurdles. I was fast enough to do them, and I coordinated enough to get over them (95% of the time) without injuring myself. I always made it to the finals, usually placed in the top 4 and occasionally won a couple meets!

After I graduated I put running on the back burner for good. Then a few years ago before Erin's wedding, I started running every evening at the local track just to get pretty legs again. And then when she was married, I quit again. Last April I ran a 5K just for the heck of it with no training what so ever (and it was pretty embarrassing).

In December I started training for the Flannigan's St. Patrick's Day 5K. Well things happened (hurt knee, life) and I quit running for about 6 weeks until it got warm enough to run outside again (it was 85 in mid-March). And I've been a running machine every day since. And Tyler is getting into it too, so we have been talking while running or running together when we can, which is a great support system. I also run with Payton, who is a junior high track/cross country superstar, and this summer I'm going to start running a few evenings a week with my cousin who is doing a race with me in July.

I personally agree with many of these sayings, especially the part about self-discovery. I do a lot of thinking while I run. It also puts me in a good mood. I feel awesome when I finish and less stressed. And my butt looks much better in my spandex shorts! ;)

I'm at Week 7 in my C25K workout. I've signed up for the Dogwood Festival 5K on 4/28, Komen for the Cure 5K on 5/19, currently undecided between the Run for the Zoo or Warrior Dash on 6/3, and the Color Run on 7/21.

I'm so excited for my race on Saturday. I'm hoping my excitement will help me to not be horrible and keep pace with Payton. My goal is to not stop!

And in February I'm going to run the Disney Princess Half-Marathon with Erica at Disney World. I am so excited about that one that I can hardly stand it and it's 9 months away! You get to run through Cinderella's Castle!!!

I'm not a costume wearer, but I'm afraid if I don't wear one I'll regret it! Gotta think of something cute and practical for running 13.1 miles.

They say you should be able to add a mile a month to your distance. I've got 9 months to add 11 miles. I hope I can do it. I don't want to get picked up by the cart at the back of the pack and transported to the finish line for not moving fast enough. :)

I even got new shoes to help put a little pep in my step while running. I love them! I saw them at Macy's back in February, but of course they didn't have my size. I randomly went into Famous Footwear last week and there they were! On sale!!!! 

cutest running shoes ever.

And I've been keeping track of my miles with my Nike+, and I'm pretty proud that in the last 1.5 months I've ran 70+ miles. Now granted that's not a lot if I plan on running a half marathon, but I'm proud of myself for now.