The Anti-Running Runner

Next Saturday, I'll be doing the Gasparilla 15K with my hubby, his coworker, and his coworker's wife. I'm excited to be doing less than a half this time. I'm also excited that my husband's coworker talked him into the race because he's not a fan of road races, which he considers boring, so he rarely runs them with me. Today I plan to run around 6 or 7 miles, and maybe a few shorter runs next week. I'm enjoying the cooler winter weather and I hope it will stick around longer this year. By April last year, it was hot and didn't really cool down again until the end of October. Don't get me wrong, I love the heat, but training in it can be a challenge. The following Saturday after that, Team Hea and Bria will be doing the Race for the Greys 5K. I'm looking forward to that and still debating whether to bring Lance along. He's a good runner, but I worry about how he'll behave in a large crowd of dogs if hubby is not able to come. So we...

After doing two half marathons two weeks apart, I’m reminded of why I’m not eager to do another marathon quite yet. The time it takes to train, the pain, the agony, the misery, the crying… Anyway, I’m happy to report that the St. Pete Inaugural Rock N Roll Half Marathon was a blast. Team Hea and Bria ran together with my college roommate, Brenna. We stayed together and enjoyed the great route and the scenery. Even though we started in different corrals, somehow Hea found us in the crowd of 10,000! She knew which corral we were in, so that probably helped. The one downside: the temp was 40 degrees! That’s right, it was 70-some degrees on Saturday and on Monday, but a freakish low temp swooped in Sunday and stayed for the length of the race. My layers: dri-fit short-sleeved shirt, dri-fit long-sleeved shirt, cotton hoodie, black tights, shorts with pockets over the tights, and gloves. I carried some Ibuprofen in the pocket, but nothing else. No iTouch this time. I expec...

I have a dear friend who volunteers for Greyhound Pets of America  - Tampa Bay. They have an upcoming event that could use your support, and it involves running! Race For the Greys is a charity event that will be held at beautiful Lake Seminole Park on March 11, 2012. There is a 5K run/walk that begins at 8am and a 1 Mile walk that begins at 8:05am. The website (linked above and below) has information on the main page if you scroll down to this picture: Bring your dog and run or walk either event, or become a sponsor! All the information you need is on the website to support this wonderful cause. My dear friend, Hea, will be joining me as we run the 5K. I'm hoping my hubby will be able to come and bring our dog, Lance, who is an English springer spaniel. All dogs are welcome at the Race For the Greys. Click here for more info.

This final vlog is Alyssa and Jenni finishing the full marathon! I am quite excited to see them looking so good, so there is some screaming from me. Hopefully, it's not too loud. :) Sadly, my camera stopped working when Hea and Jason finished the marathon, but they also looked great. I'm so proud of Hea for completing her first marathon! And Jason, too! James completed the half ahead of me and did awesome. We had three people cheering us all on. Mike (Hea's boyfriend), Erin (Jason's wife), and Cami (James's wife) were all there supporting us. We had so much fun and I recommend this beautiful, flat race to anyone looking for a fun full or half marathon. Just be sure to look over my recommendations from the "Bienvenido A Miami" blog.

This video is me finishing. I'm a little out of it and can't figure out my iTouch at this point! But I'm almost done.

This is at Mile 12.5 where Alyssa and Jenni went one way and I went toward the half finish.

I carried my iTouch during the race, and I'm glad I did! I have four videos to share from the race. This first vlog is just after Mile 5.

Every race is an adventure, but some more than others. I realize I have a lot of adventure stories from past races that I'd like to blog about sometime. Stay tuned for those. Last weekend, I ran the Miami Half Marathon with my dear cousin, Alyssa, and her friend, Jenni. Both of them ran the full marathon. Because the full and the half start together and stay together until mile 12.5, I only had to run the last half mile alone. While this wasn't my best half marathon (2:35), I always feel accomplished when I finish. I pray a lot during and I'm so grateful each time I cross another finish line. Alyssa, Jenni, and I chatted throughout, admiring the gorgeous waterfront scenery. This was the most beautiful marathon we'd ever done. The temp was around 71 degrees most of the race, and it was overcast, but also very humid. That made it challenging, along with the fact that I didn't sleep the night before! That doesn't normally happen to me. The adve...