Thanks for checking out my blog..I hope you'll become a regular here. Before I get into it I want to send a quick disclaimer....I'm not a writer and I write like a talk (which some people say is quite helpful). Also, I can get sidetracked at times (this will mostly happen in the beginning when I'm getting important background stuff covered). If you like what you see, share my blog with friends!
Well, I did it, I registered for my 1st marathon..ahhhh! I will be running in the Bank Of America Chicago Marathon on October 13, 2013.
Sure, as of today it's 230 days away, but it's never too soon to start panicking! I'm writing this blog to chronicle my journey to Chicago. Training will get tough and I've been told will get worse before it gets better so I thought maybe writing this blog will help me work through the difficult training days. I'm hoping others who have "run a marathon" on their bucket lists will find hope in accomplishing it through reading my blog. "If this chick can do it I'm sure I can!" ha ha I'm also hoping this blog can be a cool reflection for me when it's all over.
I'm going into this with a torn meniscus I hope I can keep under control until after the race. I have taken my "before training" photos of myself and hope to see some nice changes throughout training/finishing.
My training doesn't officially start until early June, so until then I'll be running less seriously getting at least 10-15 miles in a week. The registration opened on 2/19 and that day I had no intentions of running, but felt pumped about registering so I did a quick 5 mile run...Downloading new songs to my ipod also found me running when it wasn't planned. I can be quirky with my runs. Some days I feel like I have lead weights on my legs and can't get in 2 miles and others, like this week, I feel like I could run forever.
For those who don't know me, here's Kelly as a runner:
I don't love running, but I'm decent at it and I'm super competitive...this combo got me into running and at times is the only reason I do it. I think of myself as an act then think kind of a person. I get ideas, commit then think about it and wonder why I can't think 1st ha ha I'm also not much of a researcher. This mentality may be what got me into the marathon.
"Competitively" I started with biking doing races or metric century rides in LI here and there (2006ish) and then wound up doing some biathlons in Central Park. (run 2, bike 12, run 2). I have to say, completing these made me feel like an Olympian because until that point I wasn't very athletic ha ha
The 1st 5K I ran was a few years back (2008?) and I have to say the idea of running 3 miles seemed like an impossible feat. I'm sure I have, at the very least, a dozen 5Ks done. I still do 5Ks here and there for a good cause, but not too much. In Oct of 2010 I ran my 1st 1/2 marathon. (The Diva 1/2...I suggest it to any woman going out for their 1st 1/2 marathon-I'll get into my 1/2 marathons later) Subsequently, I've run the NJ Long Branch 1/2 (blehh) and the Philly Rock and Roll 1/2 (that was my best time for a 1/2 marathon and ironically it was my worst training). The thinking I had about 5Ks suddenly came true for 5Ks.."ehh I've done enough of these...they're getting old" and for 1/2 marathons "If I'm going to put all this wear and tear on my body I might as well just do a marathon and get that off my bucket list." I'll talk more about my past as a runner later...
Why Chicago? Why now? As I mentioned I have a torn meniscus and my other knee isn't much better. I went to PT and when I was asked, "what is your goal in PT?" my response was, "run a marathon." While they tried to tell me the damage marathon training/running does to your body I couldn't be dissuaded (as I mentioned before I act then think and I had told people I was going to run a marathon....I couldn't back down! ha ha) Timing of the marathon was key....My knee is getting worse and worse so I've decided I need to get this marathon in now. I've made a deal with myself that I will look into surgery more after the marathon. If it's torn more I will POSSIBLY get the surgery, but I want this marathon in before surgery is a last option. I've heard stories where meniscus surgery has ended someones running career...I don't want that to happen to me. Now onto when, during the year I will race...the timing of most marathons works with my timing needs for training...since I'm a teacher I wanted to do a race that was in early fall so a bulk of my training can be done over the summer when my schedule is a little more flexible. Now onto which marathon to race....NY wasn't really an option..it's too hard to get into and if I have an idea to do something I'm doing it at that time-lotteries or being put on the following year's list wouldn't work for me. Boston you have to qualify for, Philly and DC were just plain out of the question for me, personally, and I had heard good things about Chicago. A colleague ran Chicago and raved and so it was decided!
My friend, Alice and I had reminders on our phones for the opening of registration so @ 1:00 on February 19th we were on the site with racing hearts and sweaty palms registering for the marathon. Active was awful with registration and the site kept crashing...I thought maybe this is a sign, but we kept at it and within the hour it was made official....and so my journey begins!
As I mentioned, my official training doesn't start until June, but I will be blogging about past races, must have songs for your ipods, "races" I'm doing like the Bay To Breakers in San Fran in May to a local 5K I'm doing with work friends in April, gear I love, articles related to marathons, recipes, the program I'll be following, tips I've picked up along the way from great ways to ice down to the best way to tie your shoes for a run...basically keep in touch!
