There I was in a sea of runners. The cool air felt refreshing as the race started. I pushed start on my iPod and off I went, slowly at first. I found my place along the left side of the road. This is where I always run. It just feels right. From a cluster of runners the crowd begins to thin as each runner falls into his or her pace. I’m focused on my breathing for the first couple of miles. In and out, in and out until it becomes even and rhythmic. I’m never sure when it happens but at some point in each run my breathing becomes unnoticeable.

Despite all the people running around me I’m not competing against any of them. Each race I race against myself only. This particular race is just for me. I’m not even trying to earn a PR this race. I’m running it simply because I can. Eight weeks ago I couldn’t have run the race. I couldn’t have even run the 5K I was really supposed to run at this event. My revised training plan called for a 13 mile long run. When the weekend neared I knew I wanted to run the half yet I waited though to make a final decision. I kept an eye on the weather. High 50s and sunny the weather bug app showed. My husband finished his weekend job the day before. My sister had some free time and said she would come up to see us and a friend who lives in the same town as the race. My best friend’s house is on the course and her and her family were all going to be home. All signs pointed to running the race except for one. I had to work the night before. I’ve never run anything longer than a 5K race after working. I told myself I have run plenty of long runs after working and the race was simply taking the place of my long run. No pressure. All systems a go.

Mile 3 comes and goes, other than a quick walk at the water station I don’t stop. I’m trying to enjoy the experience, take it easy with my pace so I don’t burn out and make it up as many hills as possible. I get lost in my own thoughts for the next few miles. I am thinking about this journey to the marathon. I can’t believe that just weeks ago I was in agony with the slightest movement. I glance down at my legs with admiration. These legs I’ve chastised for years for being so big and making me look like an Anjou pear. In case you didn’t know skinny jeans are not made for pear shaped woman. I have new admiration for my legs. They certainly are capable of amazing things. My body is moving effortlessly as my thoughts wander. I can’t help but wonder who I am these days. I don’t even remember what weekends were like before running.

Around mile 6 two of my friend’s sons rode their bikes in my direction. They told me that I would pass their house at mile 7 and then sped off to let everyone know I was coming soon. We were heading up a big hill but as it started to level off I spotted my friend’s driveway. There she was with her four boys, her mom, my husband and my son. They were all cheering for me. My son ran towards me with a cup of water shouting Go Mommy Go Mommy over and over. Runners passed me smiling. It certainly made up for what has become tradition at the end of my half marathons.

I was half way there. The course had a few more big hills to conquer, but I was assured that the last couple of miles would be mostly flat. Sometime around mile 10 my calves started to burn. All those uphill climbs were becoming downhill slides. I tried to take the downhills slowly because I didn’t want to injure myself, but it felt so good to coast along.

The last two miles were along a fairly busy main road. Cars whizzed by. The scenery grew redundant. The sun began to fade and the air grew cooler. I knew the finish was near. Soon I saw it ahead. As I got closer to the chute I scanned the dwindling crowd for my family. I crossed the finish line and looked around again. Somehow I knew they weren’t there. I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself. This was my third half marathon and I have yet to be greeted at the finish by my family. Each race has it’s own comical story. This one is no different. It really doesn’t bother me as long as they are there in some way.

Another race phenomenon unique to me is that I have yet to receive a medal. I’m ok with this too, but that Disney medal is mine!

In 13 months I have run three half marathons. I’ve wanted to write this post for a week because so many emotions ran through me during the race. This one challenged me more than the others. I conquered the hills and surprisingly they didn’t slow me down as much as I thought they would. My body continues to surprise me. I continue to surprise myself.  I suppose it’s fitting that I’m writing this on the eve of my longest run yet. My alarm is set for 5am and tomorrow morning I WILL run 20 miles.

Here is a snapshot of the week’s training schedule:

I accomplished a lot this training week. Seems fitting that Week 17 included a 17 mile run. Wow 17 miles was surreal. I left my house at about 5:45 am. I didn’t have an exact route planned out, but I knew that I was headed toward the town my mother lives in. To get there I went through three other towns. I made a pit stop at my favorite reservoir and looped around one time just to pick up mileage. Much of the route was residential including one very long road with sidewalks. Due to the storm many of the sidewalks were littered with tree limbs and other debris. I was jumping on and off sidewalks and running in the road quite a bit. It probably wasn’t the best route, but since I left so early in the morning there weren’t many cars on the road.

I wore my CamelBak under my sweatshirt so I looked like a running hunchback! It was nice to have it right on me though. I fueled with raisins and Honey Stinger Organic Chews. This was my first experience with the Honey Stinger Chews. I like them, but the package is a bit bulky to keep on me. So far I’ve had the most luck with Clif Shot Bloks, raisins and Welches Fruit Snacks. Gu makes me gag.

The weather was on the cool side probably in the 40s. I had gloves that I wore on and off throughout the run. I layered a moisture wicking shirt, t-shirt and thin hooded sweatshirt and wore a pair of capri running pants. I was comfortable the entire time and felt as though I was perfectly dressed for the temperature.

I ran my heart out. I took short walk breaks when needed. I zoned out, listened to music, thought about a million things, made a “to do” list in my head, imagined being at the marathon and what it will be like to cross that finish line. I am pretty sure I actually teared up when I conjured up that mental image. The only thing I didn’t consider was quitting.

When I reached 17 miles I walked for a few minutes. I was still about 3 miles away from my mother’s house so I called and asked her to come get me. She laughed and said, “You made it this far and you can’t run the rest of the way.” She was joking of course. I told her that the plan was 17 miles and I was sticking to it!! My legs were sore at this point. I felt fine otherwise.

I’m not exactly sure who I’ve become, but I have to be honest I really like this super active person. It makes me so proud to think of how far I’ve come. I don’t dread the long runs yet I am challenged by them. Finishing any run is an accomplishment, but there is nothing like completing a double digit run.

Week 17 was a great week. I ran more than I was supposed to simply because I felt like it. I got in a good strength training workout on Friday. I decided on Friday that I was going to run a local half marathon on Sunday. Spur of the moment half marathon? Who does that? Me, that’s who!

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

I did it! I completed my third half marathon today at the Monson Memorial Classic. The entire event is comprised of a 2 Mile Fun Run, a 5K and the Half Marathon. The races are run in memory of sisters Kelly Waldron and Kathy Waldron Perry who died eight months apart from different types of cancer. This year proceeds from the race are going to support the SHADE Foundation which provides education and awareness towards skin cancer prevention and Griffin’s Friends, a local organization dedicated to providing support to children with cancer and their families.

It’s a great event, very well organized, family friendly and an incredible after race event with a huge spread of food, fruit, water bottles, yogurt and bagels. The best part is that my best friend and her family live in the town. The race goes right by their front yard. Orlando and Carlos stayed there while I ran. My friend and her oldest son ran the 5K last year. They hope to join in again next year. It’s definitely an event I can see making a yearly tradition.

It was a fantastic race, perfect weather and a lot of hills! Serious hills. These hills didn’t quit and neither did I. Back with more on this race but right now I need to get some sleep. I’ll close with the obligatory Mommy and Carlos photos I get before each race.

I should note that the sporty little Mercedes behind me is not mine! Cute though. I’ll be back tomorrow with a race recap and my marathon training from last week.

This weekend my long run called for 13 miles. I’m getting a little bored with all of my usual running routes. I decided yesterday that instead of doing my long run today I will do the 13 miles tomorrow at the Monson Memorial Classic Half Marathon. Last year my husband and I ran the 5K at this race. It was my first 5K under 30 minutes. We were planning to do it again this year, but things changed a bit when I broke my rib. Also my husband hasn’t had much time to go running lately. Although last year he came in 9th with barely any preparation. Curse those long muscular soccer player legs! Honestly it was incredible. I wish I could have seen him finish, but I was quite a ways behind.

So we will be back tomorrow. I am excited about doing a long run in a different location. I am in no way concerned about time. The course is very hilly and I am not interested in an injury so I am planning to run at the pace I’ve been running and take it easy up the hills.

My best friend and her family lives in the town. I will run by their house at some point. Orlando and Carlos will have fun with them and then hopefully everyone will venture down town to watch me finish. Should be a really fun day and the forecast looks gorgeous.

Hope you’re having a great weekend.

I feel like things are starting to come together again with my training. This was a good running week despite the aftermath of the October snow storm.

I know that it might look like there is no rhyme or reason to my training schedule. I felt that way sometimes with my first half marathon training plan, but it worked. I have to stay flexible because of my work schedule, Carlos’ calendar and Orlando’s work schedule. This week was a perfect example of how I adapted the training plan around everyone’s needs.

On Sunday, Carlos and I went to spend the day at my sister’s house out near Boston. We ended up spending the night because my husband let me know that the power probably wouldn’t return that night and all the schools in the area were cancelled on Monday. Can you believe a snow day in October? I maintained Sunday as a rest day since I had run 15 miles the day before.

On Monday, my sister took me to her gym so I could get a run in. I managed to run 4 broken up miles; 2 miles, then check on Carlos in the gym daycare, then 2 more miles. I was proud of myself for running even though I was wearing my sister’s boyfriend’s sneakers because I didn’t have my own. Not sure if I have incredibly big feet for a woman (size 9) or he has small feet! Awkward!! Unfortunately I didn’t have my own headphones either so I had to borrow my sister’s earbuds. I don’t like to be negative, but can I just say how much I hate earbuds. Am I the only one whose inner ears sweat and seem to push the earbuds right out? They will not stay in my ears and I find them incredibly uncomfortable. So by mile 2 I was running without music. Treadmill = boring, Treadmill without music = torture. My sister was bopping along next to me with her earbuds in the whole time. Oh well 4 out of my intended 5 miles was better than nothing.

My Mom popped in for a visit on Tuesday afternoon and although it was a scheduled rest day I decided to take advantage of having my Mom there to watch Carlos and go for a short run. I did a 3 mile loop around my house. The weather was perfect for it though the streets were a mess and I was dodging branches and fallen tree limbs everywhere. It felt great to be outside and running so I didn’t mind.

On Tuesday night I woke up to a few text messages before work announcing that there was no school again on Wednesday. I had a 10 mile run planned because I already knew that I would be pushing off my long run until Sunday. I really wanted to get that run done. I sent a quick text to my friend enlisting her daughter to babysit the next morning. It was a cold one and the streets were simply not safe for such a long run so I decided to sweat it out on the treadmill at my gym. This time I had my own headphones!

There was school on Thursday which doesn’t affect Carlos since he only goes Monday, Wednesday and Friday, but it meant that he would go to school the next day. Carlos and I did some light upper body strength training in the living room. He uses my 2 pound weights and I used the 5 pound weights. I did some planks, modified push ups and a few other exercises. Then we had a dance party in the kitchen. I try to do something active everyday even if it’s not on my schedule.

I got my 8 mile run in on Friday as scheduled while Carlos was at school. My husband had a dentist appointment and a job to do on Saturday, and Carlos had a birthday party in early afternoon so I already knew that it was a bad day for a long run. I made it a rest day and did some stretching here and there throughout the day. I went to bed relatively early in preparation for my longest run to date. The 17 miler! More to come on that. I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. I can’t believe it’s Monday again.

One of the reasons I started running was because it was simple. I mean simple in the sense that all you need is a pair of sneakers. After my son was born I knew that I needed to find a type of exercise that I could do relatively quickly and without necessarily going anywhere. My gym isn’t far but it’s often challenging to find time to go. So running fit the bill. I could tie my sneakers, leave out my front door and run in any direction.

Back then my iPod looked like this:

I didn’t run far enough to require water or fuel. Then things changed a bit. The iPod started to look something like this:

I started training for actual races and grew bored just running out my front door. Rather than run on a treadmill or a track I needed something to calculate my mileage. My workout gear started to look a little something like this:

Nike+ System with Nike Receiver and Sensor Case to Hold Nike iPod Sport Kit Sensor

I loved the Nike+ system. It took my running to an entirely new level. Suddenly I was not only able to run anywhere and know how far I had gone but I was made aware of my pace. My Nike+ and I trained for my first half marathon together. It was an invaluable tool.  Instead of running multiple times around the one mile loop at the nearby college pond I was able to run anywhere. This made running more interesting. The more interested I was the more likely I was to stick with it.

Most of my half marathon training took place during the summer – the summer of 2010 was an incredibly hot summer here in the northeast. Now that I was running anywhere my legs desired I needed to carry hydration on me. I found it uncomfortable to run with a water bottle in my hand. I checked out water belts but decided that was a big NO. I’m hippy enough. I don’t need anything else jiggling around that area. This seemed to be the only logical choice:

Camelbak Annadel 50 oz Hydration Pack

I remember getting ready for a long run with my Camelbak on for the first time. My husband, son and I all had a good laugh. Who the hell was I? I like my Camelbak, but I admit I don’t use it very often because I do feel a little ridiculous with it on my back. It is reserved for long runs only.

All around the blog world runners of every size, shape, speed and age were singing the praises of their beloved Garmin Forerunners. “Hmmm they look kind of bulky to me,” I thought. “I don’t need that I have my Nike+,” I muttered to myself wondering what all the fuss was about. Then just 3 weeks before my first half marathon my Nike+ died abruptly. I ran my last long run with an iPhone app that was so frustrating to use it somehow made me run more than 13 miles rather than the scheduled 12. Yes it’s all the iPhone app’s fault. I played around with a few other apps but I didn’t like them and they seemed to suck the battery life besides the fact that I had no desire to run with my iPhone.

One day a blogger announced a seriously ridiculous great deal on this:

The Garmin Forerunner 205 was on sale on Amazon.com for $89 plus I had a $25 gift card. So for $64 I added a new member to my running repertoire. It was indeed big, but I instantly understood what all the fuss was about. This gadget is as amazing as everyone claimed.

Back in January my car was broken into while I was running. My iPhone was stolen from its hiding place under the passenger seat. After that debacle I needed some way to carry my iPhone on me while running. A little skeptical at first I reluctantly ordered a SPIBelt.

The SPIBelt is incredible. It fits my phone and my bulky car key. Anyone wondering where I stored the car key before I bought this? Oh yeah in my sports bra! Back to the SPIBelt though. It stays in place, doesn’t jiggle and it is very comfortable.

The break in got me thinking about my safety as a runner. I run alone and although my husband knows where I run if something were to happen no one  would know who my husband was. So I got one of these:

Road ID

This is a Road ID. The photo is taken from their website. The IDs are customizable and engraved with your personal information. It is thin, lightweight and unnoticeably comfortable while running.

Last but not least my iPod disappeared in April. Really, it literally just disappeared. I know exactly where I put it when I came into the house on that fateful day. Hours later it was gone, walked right out of here. We haven’t see it since. I managed to get an almost identical iPod Nano from Craigslist and that served the purpose until it started acting up. It now belongs to Carlos and for our birthdays Orlando and I splurged on this beauty:

iPod Nano Multi-Touch

Orlando and I never run at the same time so it works for us to share the iPod. I love it. I wear it on my wrist like a watch while I’m running. I can switch songs with a button now instead of fumbling with the dial or screen which doesn’t work if you have gloves on.

Somehow over the course of a couple of years I’ve gone from a pair of running sneakers to all this gear. I feel a bit ridiculous sometimes, but it keeps me moving. It’s 5:30 on Sunday morning. You can probably imagine what I look like as I get ready to hit the road for my 17 mile long run. Orlando is going to bring Carlos to my Mom’s this morning because he has a job to do. I am planning to run to my Mom’s house which is about 15 minutes away by car. Remind me again, who am I?