Blogging is just ok...

Blogging takes time, effort, and creativity (to be at all exciting).  And since its optional, I usually think about it and actively choose not to do it.

It snowed for the first time here on Friday.  I ran in the afternoon, 6.5 at marathon pace, it was a good run. And I didn't have to push it to hit 7:15s, a good feeling.  I must admit that it didn't hurt that I started while it was 40 and cloudy, which transitioned to 35 and raining, which transitioned to 30ish and sleeting.

That evening (Kari out of town) I looked outside around 9:15 and the lawn was covered with snow.  This lead to my obligatory, traditional first night snow of the year run.  And although I condemn music while running since it is a safety hazard and takes away from the mental toughness built through endurance running, its my guilty pleasure to run to Owl City during a night snow.  That was, as usual, a fantastic run.

So 2 weeks ago I put in 20ish miles, and last week about 30.  Consistency is key and I need to make that mantra.  The only quote currenly working is, "Running is a question that's there everyday asking are you going to run today, or are you a wimp?" 

I'd hate to say that I chose to be a wimp.

Week one down.

So my first week of running while simultaneously blogging (kind of) went well.  Running well is just a step below running fantastic.  If you have a bad week of running you are either hurting, unable to hit your desired pace, or worse, missing runs.  If you have an exciting week of running you're either almost getting hit by cars (or trains - Ryan), bitten by a dog, or getting lost on a new run route.  That being said, my week went well and uneventful.

I was able to sneak in just under 33 miles this week, in what I imagine is one of the highest mileage weeks of my life.  I ran mostly 4-6 miles with a long run of 8 on Sunday.  On Saturday I ran a 5mi XC race out at Wehrspann Lake near my my parents abode.  Hilly and unkempt, the trails were good for a combination of speed and hill work rolled into one lung-burning outing.  I ran 6:55s for a end time of 34:35, good enough for me.

I've continued to avoid gluten and sugar like the plague, although I gave into a little processed velveeta cheese with rotel spicy tomatoes. Mmmm...But my headaches have been minimal and workout recovery has gone well...and I attribute this to my committment to eating at the outside edges of the grocery store (and stretching).

On Monday night the weather finally shifted from highs in the 70s to highs in the mid 50s for the rest of the week.  While I realize this is not cold, it did make me cringe at the thought of the winter being 40 degrees cooler than it already was...I was really getting used to the 70s, maybe I ought to move to San Diego....

Thanks to Ryan for being my running/training resource and accountability partner in this.

"Running is a question that is there everday asking, "Are you going to be strong and run today? Or are you going to be a wimp?"   -Some avid runner

Where to start...

   This a blog may not be interesting.  In fact it probably won't be.  I don't have any back story, I don't have to overcome anything more than the average marathon runner.  In fact, I consider my athletic ability average to above average.  It's more a test of will.  Qualifying will be taxing physically, but not unthinkable.  However, mentally it will be a challenge.  I need to grow my practice, master teaching, and run 50 miles a week...this will test my mental toughness.  But as one of my life goals, I can't think of a better time to start on that list.
   I started my running career about 4 years ago.  It began with triathlons, but they soon fell by the wayside as I fell for running as school demanded more of my time.  Since then I've done countless 5Ks, plenty of 10Ks, 7 half marathons, and one trail marathon. I've taken days off, I've ran for weeks straight, and I've taken entire months off.  Throughout graduating from school, treating hundreds of runners, getting married and moving, one thing has stayed pretty consistent.  If I wasn't running, I wanted to.  If I was running, I wanted to run more.
   So after a long period of trying to stay in some semblance of shape I have hit a landmark in my running career.  I've treated more than the usual Boston Marathon Qualifiers at my clinic using A.R.T. and their stories and consistent training have given me the itch.  Starting at the beginning of October I have vowed to start training consistently and more importantly, with a goal in mind.  My goal being to run sub 3:10:59 by May 1st 2011 (The Lincoln National Guard Marathon).
   I'm very aware that no one may read this blog, and that if they do, they'll probably find it fairly to extremely boring.  That being said, I'm also logging my runs in a journal and on mapmyrun.com.  This isn't so much to show people as it is to have something to keep me accountable. I'll be putting my weekly training (hopefully) as well as races, training plans, and other things I learn along the way. 
   Read if you'd like, if you don't, I won't be offended in the least bit.

63 miles so far this month...more on the way