6 Miles on Day 6!

Hello bloggers! I RAN 6 MILES TODAY!!!!! And guess what ya'll? I only walked not even half a mile. I just got on a roll and just kept going. I hit a point where my legs hurt, my lungs hurt, my feet hurt...but they all hurt in one continuous movement that somehow propelled me 6 miles. It really gave me hope for running longer distances. 

This week is going to be a hard running week, not because of miles but because of time. But the schedule is this:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Run 3 miles

Wednesday: Run 3 Miles

Thursday: Run 3 Miles

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Run 7 miles (one mile increase)

Sunday: Cross train

Another 3 mile week, but it will increase the further into this adventure that I get.

Ok ya'll, I need some advice. I was looking at the USMC Marathon web site last night and I found a loophole to be able to run the race this October. If I run for an organization, I get a registration number. So I was looking at different organizations, and the National Hospice Foundation stuck out to me. I have to fundraise a minimum of $1200, BUT half of my funds will go to a hospice of my choice. I would donate it to the hospice that helped take care of my grandpa in his final months. They truly are angels. So here is the question: can I raise enough money by October 30? And, will I be physically ready to run the USMC marathon? AND I would need to raise/save enough money to fly to D.C. from Utah, where I go to school? These are a few challenges that I have to face, and a few decisions I need to make. But I want to run this marathon, especially now that I have a cause to run for. Any thoughts? What do you think bloggers: would you be willing to help me raise enough money to run this race? Decisions decisions....

Well, I am going to go enjoy my advil/icy hot combination I have going on right now.

Happy Running! Peace!

Day 4: Make Up Run With Some Tears on the Side

Hello bloggers! It is day 4 of this adventure and I made up my miles from yesterday. 3 miles today! And let me tell you, it was a good run. I didn't wanna stop running, but on my way home I ran into my friend Katie...who I was supposed to be hanging out with. Woops. Didn't time that very well! But I figured I would squeeze in a run while I could. Tomorrow I will be doing an hour of cross-training, so I am going to get up tomorrow morning and go do laps in the pool for an hour.

Today was good. Social. I hung out with Lauren, and cheated on my diet by eating frozen yogurt. And then I hung out with Katie and cheated on my diet again by eating ice cream. And I just finished skyping two of my best friends from school, Camie and Celina. I think my friend Rachel is about to get on skype as well, so I can see her wonderous face tonight too!

Overall, I am pretty pumped. My run was good. I am so ready for my 6 mile run on Sunday. I am feeling good. My body is good, and I can feel it getting into shape again.

However, tonight I heard some sad news. I don't want to spend a lot of time talking about it, but I feel like it deserves a shout out. A childhood friend of mine, who acted like my second mother, passed away today from her fight with breast cancer. I ran Race for the Cure in her name last year, along with my grandfather's. She was truly a beautiful soul to have in my life. I will miss her. My tears won't bring her back, and I know that she is in a happier place. I miss her already. My thoughts and prayers go out to her family.

Well, this running adventure continues tomorrow! 

Happy Running! Peace!

Day 3....rained out!

Hello bloggers! So I was planning on going on an evening run tonight, because I love running at night. Well...a freak storm came through my area tonight. I mean, driving home from my brother's baseball game was scary. Let me tell ya! Good thing my mom was driving and not me! That is all I gotta say. I am going to make up my 3 miles tomorrow and run the 6 miles on Sunday morning.


Well since I have no running update for ya'll, I figured I would tell you a little bit about where my inspiration comes from. When I run, I think of many things. I think of what I did during the day, what I need to do later, the concerns and worries in my life, and many other things. But I mostly think about my grandpa. He passed away last October after a 4 year battle with breast cancer. I first started running because I was training for the Air Force ROTC program, which led to me running Race for the Cure with my family. If you don't know anything about race for the cure, well it is a race to help fight breast cancer. It was an amazing run because you are running for a cause.


I miss my Nonno every day. And when I run, I think of everything he taught me in life. When I want to quit on a goal, I think of what he taught me: "Don't do anything unless you can do it right". That doesn't include quitting. I joined the Air Force because I wanted to follow in his footsteps. I wanted to get a glimpse of that love and patriotism he felt for his country. I wanted to continue his legacy, because maybe if I could, I could make him stay with me forever. Well I am no longer in the Air Force. I can't, because of my asthma. But you know what? He is still with me. Every step I take, he is with me. I put on my running shoes every day and I think of him. I run for him. I know he is proud of me, even if I am not in the Air Force. So I am going to run this marathon. I am going to support our troops. I am going to support the legacy he left behind. Because I am my Nonno's granddaughter. And not a day goes by where I don't think of him and smile. I smile because of all the lessons, the love, and the passion that he left behind. He taught me to be a fighter. So I will fight each mile until I can put that 26.2 mile bumper sticker on my car!


Happy Running! Peace!

Day Two

Hello bloggers! Day two is over and finished with. I ran 3.2 miles today on my most favorite route. And let me tell ya. My body is gonna be so in shape by the end of this. How do I know this? Because all of my muscles in my legs are killing me. And it feels glorious! Did I mention that I am an exercise addict?

So my run today was hard. There was one point where I was more than halfway through where I just didn't wanna run anymore. So I stopped, I stretched, I steadied my breathing (I was wheezing a little bit), and friends, I ran every last step of my run! I can totally do this. Just gotta keep up my motivation. I can do it! 

Overall, I am proud of myself. I wanted to give up. My body wanted me to give up. I am sore people! And it was hot! But guess what? I didn't. If I don't give up on myself after 3 miles, then I won't give up on myself after 20 miles. Each week, each run will really suck. It will. But I will look back at each run and say, "I did it". What else could I ask for? 

3 mile run tomorrow and then 6 mile run on Saturday. First week is almost complete!

Happy Running! Peace!

Day One

Hello bloggers! Tonight was the first day of this challenge! Wahoo! So today, I ran 3 miles. I had to take my brother to baseball so I had to run an unfamiliar course...and I realized, I am a creature of habit. It is so much easier to run when you know where you are going. 


So I went to the park across the street from the baseball fields, expecting to find a great 1-2 mile course. So I am running and I kept passing the same pond. Obviously, it was not as long as a course as I thought it was. So I ended up running the streets around the park. Just as effective. I am pretty sure I hit 3 miles. I accidentally turned off the gps tracking feature on my phone....woops :p. But tomorrow morning I am running my 3.2 mile route around my neighborhood.


Lesson #1 that I learned today: running is hard. When it's 92 degrees, you have no idea where you are going, you asthma is acting up, and you just don't want to run anymore, it is hard to keep going. But here's the thing...I just kept going. Was it hard? Of course. But tomorrow will be easier. I just have to keep telling myself that. Tomorrow will be easier. Or it may be harder. Who cares? There is always another day, another run, more miles to complete. 


Overall, good first day. I am still pumped about this challenge, so hopefully my momentum will continue once I get into mileage I have never run before. I run for myself. I run because it is the only thing that makes sense. One foot in front of another. One more mile. Breath. Simple. 


Happy running! Peace!

I'll See You in 20 Miles!

Hello friends! Tomorrow is the big day! Not big mileage, but the start of this big adventure! Wahoo!


Well today, I went shopping for a new running outfit. Trust me, I already have plenty, but my mom always says that buying a new outfit is inspiration. So I sucked it up, spent the money, and am now ready to go. I went to the Big Peach in Winward, and let me tell you, the men who worked there are my new most favorite people. They asked me what I was training for, so I told them 


about this marathon idea. But I 
also told them that I had to buy a new outfit. They laughed and asked me when I could come in to buy a new outfit, you know, as a reward. As I was walking out I said, "I'll see you in 20 miles!". So it looks like 20 miles is my next milestone. Works for me. 




Anyways, not much for ya'll tonight. I am going out with some girlfriends tonight. But tomorrow is when the fun really starts!


Peace!

Real Housewives of Orange County...and oh yeah, running!

Hello bloggers. Countdown till training: 2 days. I just wanna run! But if I can't, then I may as well bum around and watch the Real Housewives of Orange country right? Bumming around as much as I can! Haha.


Just to clarify....a marathon is 26.2 miles. So a half marathon is 13.1 miles. I realized today that I should probably clarify that. Just so ya'll can see just how crazy I am!


Tuesday will be the magical day. I am a novice runner level one. So this week, I am running 3 miles on Tuesday, 3 miles on Wednesday, 3 miles on Thursday, and 6 miles on Saturday. By the end of the program, I will be running 40 miles or more a week. Not sure how I feel about that. My Saturday runs will eventually get up to 20 miles. What do you even think about for 20 miles? "My feet hurt" "wow that tree is really tall" "if I pass out will someone come help me?". Note to self: run with my license.


So here's a thought. I have a hip injury/asthma. So this journey is not going to be an easy one. So I was talking to one of my friends and she suggested I try the barefoot running shoe.

How goofy does this shoe look? Apparently it offers up a lot of support and gives a runner a more natural stride so it helps prevent injury. I just can't decide if I should try this. Thoughts? My real problem is that I just bought the COOLEST new balance running shoes that are heaven on my feet. So I am not sure I want to convert just yet. I am not that legit of a runner yet I suppose :)

Ok so goals have been set! I am going to try to run a half-marathon by the end of the summer before I go back to school, and then I will run my marathon out in Utah in October. It's too late to register for the USMC marathon, but that's ok. I am afraid I am going to become one of those crazy people who just run all the time and travel all over the country to run races. But hey, is that such a bad thing? Let's see how the first week goes, but I am pretty excited. I think I am going to go shopping for a new running outfit. Start this adventure out right!

Well, this entertained me for a solid ten minutes. Let the countdown begin!

Peace!

Why Run?

Hello everyone! First of all, I respect every blogger out there who was able to set up their profile all on their own. I got so frustrated, my little brother Spencer had to take the laptop from me and fix the mess I had created. Oh what would I do without tech savvy siblings??


Anyways, the reason why I went through such a frustrating process is because I have finally joined the blogging community! Wahoo! Why you may ask? Well, I have decided to train for a marathon, and what better motivation than knowing that a whole community of bloggers will be watching me? 


Where I got this crazy idea...


Well, I started running while I was training for the Air Force ROTC program. Unfortunately, I was diagnosed with asthma, so I am no longer in the program. It sucks. But hey, that's life. When life hands you oranges, make orange juice! However, I still love to run, but I haven't had anything to work towards. After reconnecting with my best friend Lauren, I had this great idea! I would train for a marathon, specifically the Marine Corps marathon in Washington D.C.. Lauren is kicking butt in the Marine Corps ROTC, so I decided that my new vendetta would be supporting the Marines (side note: I respect and thank ALL of our troops. Thank you for all that you do!). So this is when I decided that I would do a marathon. 


The internet is an amazing place. I found an 18 week plan to help train me for a marathon. My plan is to do a half marathon and a full marathon before I run the Marine marathon a year from October. Plenty of time to get in shape and build up my endurance. To make sure that I keep my motivation, I decided I would blog about it. This journey is going to be the best, worst, most loved, and most hated thing that I have ever done. And if I have you to share with, I will have to keep running! Otherwise I have to face the walk of shame...via the internet! So stick with me as I embark on the craziest idea of my life!