Marathon Mom

Sorry I know I left a little teaser post yesterday about the 4 th of July Half Marathon so here is the full report from a nonrace. Thursday night after a fun picnic with friends and kids I got home telling Matt I was not excited about the race, I had no idea what running I could do, how much and if it would result in more stupidity and injury. I knew there wasn’t a PR in sight but I just wasn’t exited to get up at 4am to run. So we were off to sleep, alarms set early and ready to take what the race threw at me! As always the morning was rushed, we got there with limited time and found the long port-a-potty line. I drank my UCAN and waited. Just as we were done I heard “30 seconds to race start!” We headed to the back and waited, I didn’t want to get caught up in the emotion of racing and knew my best approach was a late start without focus on pacers and others around me. This was a strange start, no watch but I had music. My only goal was to run comfortable and walk if it hurt, o...

Can you believe it is April finally? After a long, cold winter let's hope this is the start of better weather and a real spring! What better way to celebrate than the Spring Fling Virtual Earlier in March we put on our running shoes and headed outdoors for the 14 in 2014 Spring Fling Virtual Race! Great photos, PRs, first time distances, rainy weather, snow and the first 14 in 2014 virtual race complete.  Congrats to all of the finishers! The giveaway is a celebration of running and spring! Not just spring on the calendar. I mean a celebration of being outside, blue skies, sunshine, and warmer temperatures. Enter below! Fabulous Sponsors Add caption Let's hope this race was enough to bring on the spring weather, good luck to everyone and way to kick of spring and 14in2014 virtuals. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Remember last year when I kept signing up for all these races and then the weather stayed horrible? Well after that I vowed to avoid cold weather racing so signed up for nothing early this year until yesterday's race, an 8K which kicked off my team's racing season. When I registered about 1 1/2 weeks ago the forecast said 40s and sun, well that quickly changed come race day when I lined up in 20 (wind chill of 12)! It was cold and an afternoon race what a nasty combination! I lined up just hoping to beat my time from 2 years ago, knowing the cold air would not make this easy. It was a fine line between lining up too close to the front and too far back since team times are gun times. And we were off... I decided just run what felt good and take it easy since I have bigger things coming and can't risk an injury in the cold this early in the season (2 years ago this was the race that likely pushed me over to full injury and ended me running for 4 weeks!). Too beat last...

The official start of Spring is almost here...What better way to kick off the first day of spring than a virtual race! I’m tired of cold weather, snow, ice and being stuck inside. Sound familiar?  How about a little motivation and a reason to celebrate?   This winter has been rough on many of us and it is time to celebrate better weather! Put on your running shoes and head outdoors for the Spring Fling Virtual Race! WHO:  Anyone who wants to celebrate saying good bye winter and HELLO SPRING! You do not have to be a 14 in 2014 participant to join and be eligible for prizes. WHAT:   A virtual race is running a specified distance (you choose the distance.), timing yourself if you want, without actually being present in the race location. WHEN:   You pick the day from March 20 – March 27. WHERE:   The only requirement is that you run outside. Choose a favorite local route, a new route or just run with no specific route at all. WHY:...

January 1 st 2014, time to look back at the last year and see how I did on my goals, without even looking I can tell you not so great. It was a tough year both in running and life. 2013 began by me walking away from a job that was making me very unhappy and staying home, finishing school, over training leading to injury after injury and poor racing but it ended with a new job I enjoy, new running friends, almost overcoming injury and discovering more about me. I’m happy to say many of my goals are now crossed off!! Fitness Goals Sub 3:30 marathon (okay actually 3:15 is what I really want)- Nope, 3:31 sub 1:30 half marathon- Nope, Never really raced a half healthy 1:08 10 Mile- Nope, 1:13 sub 43:00 10K- Nope, 44:20 still a PR!! sub 20:00 5K,- Nope, 21:00 Run 13 Half/Full Marathons   Yes!! Complete a Triathlon (meaning I need to swim!)  Swam x6 but no triathlon Run 2500 Miles   2576.5 miles Give yoga a try   30 Day Yoga Challenge completed February 15t...

As 13 in 2013 draws to an end we began looking forward to the goals for 2014... Once again the response to a year long running challenge has been amazing! My goal is to stay strong and injury free in 2014. What is your goal? 305 participants so far! If you’re new to 14 in 2014, check out the original post for all the details at  Are You Ready To Run 14 in 2014? What people are saying… "I'm so excited and won't miss out this year!" "13 in 2013 was the best motivation and can't wait for 2014!" "What a great way to keep up the motivation of running all year." "I'm so in for 14 in 2014!!" Join Now! The private 14 in 2014 Facebook group is open! Part of the fun of 13 in 2013 was meeting new people, sharing our accomplishments and motivating each other in the private group! After your request has been accepted introduce yourself and check out the file tab for information and badges. Request to join here   http...

Is it just me or is the combination of holiday celebrations, nasty weather and decrease in running miles meaning slacking on healthy eating? Seriously it is just so much easier to stay inside, nice and warm baking cookies and relaxing than going through the process of getting dressed to run or drive to the gym. While I will say I'm not terrible and I enjoy my indulgences it seems that this time of year always means that second helping of dessert, extra glass of wine, etc. One of my goals to end 2013 is to snack healthy: fruits, veggies and hummus, nuts, yogurt, homemade granola, rice cakes and nut butter.  What's on your healthy snack list? I'm also joining Laura for the 21 Day Reset Challenge  beginning January 6th. Why not join others and gain the extra support to kick of 2014 on a healthy note? Laura is offering three different options: Free, group and private coaching. Also register this week and receive $10 off using code ' earlybird' Looking for an...

2014 Running Challenge First, 12 runners committed to running  12 races in 2012 . Then, in 2013, almost 900 runners signed up to run 13 in 2013. Many have even gone beyond 13 races! In September 2012 I had what I thought was a little idea to run 13 half marathons in 2013, I shared this idea with Jill and we were shocked at how far reaching this little idea grew! Not only has it been fun to share this with so many others but the inspiration is huge! Next? It's time time to start thinking about the new year. New goals and endless possibilities of what you can accomplish. I'm excited to announce that I'm teaming up with Jill again in 2014 to bring you 14 in 2014! Now, it’s time to plan and commit to a running challenge for 2014 COMMIT to a year-long running goal! To be honest, 13 in 2013 was tough, I spend much of the year dealing with an injury that sidelined my running goals. While I was able to complete my races with less then the performan...