Running... it's for you!

It's been a week since I blogged and that seems like a long time to me.  In fact, it's not long at all and I haven't really had anything to say.  I was going to do a blog on the "day in the life of..." but I forgot to take pictures. 

This week started off like my last 6 weeks. 

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday I was up early, did a few things around the house, Elizabeth gets up and she and I eat breakfast, we head to the gym at 9, leave gym around 10.  Play.  Have lunch.  She naps.  I clean or relax.  After naps we have a snack, play some more and then eat dinner.

Wednesday night, Elizabeth and I met our friends Laura, Sam, and Alice for some playtime at the indoor playground and then had dinner at Chick-Fil-A.  Laura's husband and my husband both had work commitments, so we enjoyed a night out with the kids.  We had a blast and Elizabeth was so tired by the time we got home that she went right to sleep.

Thursday morning I woke up with a sore throat, running nose, pounding headache, and a ringing in my ears.  I have been on Claritin, Dayquil, Nyquil, cough drops, throat spray, and lots and lots of sleep.  So here it is a beautiful Friday afternoon and I barely have the energy to move from the bed to the couch, let alone run the 5 miles I was supposed to run yesterday.  I definitely feel better today than yesterday, but still not great.

Now, some of you might be asking yourselves- Why were you supposed to run 5 miles yesterday?
Well, because I am training for a half marathon.  I haven't blogged about it before because I wasn't totally convinced I would be able to finish the training.  But here I am, 9 weeks done with a 12 week training program and I am registered for a race and ready to run!

If you are at all bored with your exercise routine, or want to try something different, register for a race.  I did, and running has become a really enjoyable activity for me. 

But... let me go back a few steps...

First off.  I was never a runner.  I hated running and only did it to lose weight.  And then I lost the weight and kept on running. 

Secondly, in the spring, I did a couple of 5Ks with some friends.  I blogged about it here.  I organized it as a ladies night and had so much fun I ran it again the next week with some of my students.  I was also so motivated by the women that I ran with that I decided to challenge myself a little further.  I researched races and went back and forth on it. 

Third, it wasn't until the end of May/ beginning of June that I decided to jump in and begin training for a half marathon.  One Saturday night I did some goggling and e-mailed a few friends of mine that are runners and I ended up with the Hal Higdon Training Program.  There is a link to it here. I also learned about sneakers, gel packs, water bottles, and all sorts of other training gear from my friends.  I went to a couple of running stores and picked up a few necessities to help me with my training.

I tried the gels and they made me sick, so I now I use the Shot Bloks for energy while running anything that is over 6 miles.

I also bought this water belt, but I felt weighed down and the belt moved a lot while I ran.  So I went back to the running store and bought...

This!  It is so wonderful!  It can carry my phone, shot bloks, keys, and water.  I don't feel weighed down and it is just fabulous!



Well, now that I've typed all that about running, it does make me want to get up and run.  If only I didn't have to carry a box of tissues with me.  :)