The tale of an ex- cross country runner training for a half-marathon.
Showing posts with label half marathon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label half marathon. Show all posts

Friday, August 12, 2011

Day Off

Today was one of the three scheduled days off a week.  Three. Days. Off.  During cross country, we got excited for one day off a week, and that was if we were lucky.  And don't get me wrong, I definitely appreciate a day off here and there, but sometimes the weather's perfect for running, and it's so beautiful outside, the temperature is just right, the sun is shining down, and how can you resist that?  You just can't.  So I've tried to find ways to exercise without running, so it's still technically a day off.  The other day I tried walking, which was nice, but I felt a little awkward, mostly because I was one of those people that you see walking, in normal street clothes, without a dog, that look completely out of place and you just run past them really fast hoping they won't jump out and attack you or something because really, what could they possibly be doing alone on some road besides waiting to claim their next victim?  And of course I ran into the entire high school boys' cross country team, who judged me hardcore for not running.  So yeah, the walking adventure didn't go so well.

Next up, I took to the interweb for exercise videos, which is where I stumbled upon POP Pilates on Youtube. (It's pilates, mixed with pop music. Get it? Get it? So clever.) And oh my lord.  My muscles burned in ways I didn't know they could.  I don't know if we were doing the same workout, but somehow the instructor kept a smile on her face the entire time.  How she was able to stay so peppy and chipper is beyond me, because my abs burned to the point that I couldn't tell if I was moving anymore (Oh yeah.  6 pack, here I come.).  Excessive perkiness aside, the videos were really good, and okay, fine, her excitement kept me from giving up.  I'll probably be sticking to these videos since I can do them in the comfort of my own home, without all the awkward encounters.

Friday, August 5, 2011

Mission Statement

Let me preface this blog by stating that the title is not a reference to the Black Eyed Peas song of the same name.  Fine.  Maybe it is.  Don't judge me. It's good workout music.


So, here's the story of this blog in a nutshell (What does that saying even mean?):



I used to run XC and track in high school, and I remember thinking at my last race, Ugh, thank GOD I'm done with this.  Running sucks!  Why did I choose to do this for four years?  I then proceeded to enjoy a lovely summer sans-exercise.  Then, along came college, and I started getting the urge to run again.  I fought it for as long as I could, but I started running one month into my freshman year and haven't stopped since (That makes it sound like I've been running for years.  I'm a sophomore now, you do the math.)  Now that I've finally come to terms with the fact that I'm a runner, through and through,  I've decided to run a half marathon.  Yeah, I know, the marathon is the real race, blah blah blah, whatever.  The most I've ever run was 8 miles, once, like two years ago.  So 13 (13.1!  Don't forget the extra .1!)  is kind of a big deal.  I decided to start this blog to chronicle the successes/trials/failures/difficulties/whatever else you encounter while training for a race.   I'll be following the Ultimate Half-Marathon Training Plan from Runner's World, mostly because it has ultimate in the title.  I'm a sucker for anything that sounds official.  Anyway, I'll be including other topics outside my running, because, well, that would be boring, both for me to write and you to read.  I think that just about sums it up.


And on that note, let the training commence!*






*As I write this, I'm five days into training, so technically the training has already commenced.  But the symbolism is still there!