5

(Those of you have run a marathon, I am teachable so PLEASE feel free to share any wisdom with me! I feel pretty silly because I have no clue if I am doing all the things I need to be doing!)

Well I followed Hal Higdon's plan for the half marathon and I am continuing to use his plan for the full. Tonight Hal had me run 5!It's crazy how 5 used to be quite the run but now 5 is nothing. I remember when Heidi and I first began this hard core journey and we were running 1 mile, then 2, then 3, etc. We did a 5k, then a 10k, then a half and now a full! Some people are content with a 10k but some want to go further. I was one of those people! A 10k showed me that if I could do 6.2, I could do 10 and if I could do 10, I could do 13.1! That's how it starts!

This afternoon as I began my run, I noticed a lot more people out. I saw three people running who I had never seen before. January tends to be the month where everyone starts running. But I was one of those runners. I was one of those people training for a 5k and I remember how exciting it was to finally be able to run without any walking. When I see those runners, I want to cheer them on and tell them to stick with it because I know how much it can change your life. I will be that newbie standing in line at the race expo waiting to get my Marathon packet. It still feels weird even saying it.

People who don't run often get the distances confused. I heard my Mom say something about me running a marathon back when I was training for the half marathon. I was like "Easy. I'm not a marathoner. Yet. " There is a HUGE difference between 13.1 miles and 26.2! HUGE! I know what a 17 miler feels like and my friend Wendy says that 20 miles feels way different than 17. That's the scary part to me! 10 miles does not feel much different than 12. There are certain miles that if you go easy on your pace, your body adjusts and you don't feel it so much. But 17 to 26.2 is HUGE. So even though I have made it to 17 and I will only train up to 19 or 20 before the race, I am scared! It's a fun scared though but scared!

I am currently in week 14 and this week I will do the following. This is Hal Higdon's NOVICE PLAN 1.

1/12 rest
1/13 5 mile run
1/14 9 mile run (i am not sure if I will have enough time for 9 miles but I'm hoping)
1/15 5 mile run
1/16 rest
1/17 14 mile run (do you know how great this sounds? 14 actually sounds easy)
1/18 cross train (something I am bad about because I don't have a bike or eliptical)

The reason Hal Higdon's plans work great for me is I don't use a heart rate monitor. A lot of runners do. His plan is pretty much to the point. My personality gets totally wigged out by running in zones and sprinting for 30 seconds and then run in zone 2 for 1 minute. Heidi is GREAT at this. That is how she has trained and she has taught me sooooooooo much!!! She is also faster than me. :) But I freak a little if I have a lot of directions to follow on a run. I am at home all day long, I homeschool and I have cabin fever daily. So I like to leave and not think about what I'm doing. I really wish I had the personality to do all the other stuff but it makes me dread it instead of crave it. Now if Heidi is running with me and telling me what to do, I love that. I like to be guided. Usually I want to be in control of everything but I love having her tell me what to do when we run together. She stretches me!

And that is what I love about running! There are all kinds of runners. I always have a plan because if you leave without deciding how many miles you are going to run, you will quit early. That is also why I always want to be training for something. It keeps me going!

The 5 miler was okay today. But my legs still felt a little weird after the 17 miler. This next month is going to be exhausting but it's totally worth it. Jeremy has been soooooooo supportive and very encouraging. Thankfully I have a sitter who is coming all week so I can do this. All of my "mad" money is going to her! Just a few more weeks!