The Anti-Running Runner

I almost forgot to write about this race. Maybe because I ran it alone, which I almost never do. Of course, I ran into some wonderful friends like Karen and her family and Dawn and her family, so I didn't really feel alone. That's the great thing about racing locally. I can pretty much count on running into a friend or two. I started this post to complain about my terrible attempt to run eight miles today, which turned into a sluggish six miles where my face cracked under the heat of the sun (like a dummy, I forgot sunscreen). When did complaining ever help me anyway? Instead I'll mention that I did the Honda Grand Prix 5K last Friday in a chip time of 26:56. Pretty great for me! I was feeling good at first, probably started a little faster than normal, but for the most part I think I held the pace well. According to the calculator, I ran 8.68 minute/miles. Really, that's fantastic for me. Praise Jesus for consistency and persistence even when I have a rough ru...

That's right. I'm doing it again. And hubby is doing his first marathon. What marathon are we signed up for and when? The X-Country Marathon on Nov 17, 2013 This is a trail marathon in beautiful Alafia River State Park (east of Tampa). Same place where we run The Claw Run 10 Miles. We're signed up for that race again at the end of April. Hubby doesn't like road races, but has wanted to run a marathon. When we found out about this trail marathon not too far from us, he said he would be interested in doing it someday. That day is now officially on the calendar. And it's not expensive. Only $55 for early sign-up. Hea and Mike are signed up. Hopefully, Alyssa will be able to join us, too. I once swore that I would never run a marathon. And then Alyssa talked me into Disney 2009 which was the week before my wedding. I don't recommend that, by the way. After the Disney Marathon, I swore that I would never run another ma...

Sometimes, I don't feel like running. But I'm sure I'm not the only one. At one point, this was my default setting. I rarely felt like running, and only ran because I thought I should. When I first started distance running in college, I pretty much hated it. It took about two years before that changed. By the third year, I actually admitted to someone that I loved running. Yes, that's right, running. I love you. No, it would never give me a ring, but the shiny medals will do. It doesn't even bother me that everybody gets those. You know what else, running? I hate you. My tag line for this blog is "I love to hate running." It's the best way I can describe the relationship. I managed to run three times this week, and I'm proud of that. I had a hard time getting out there. Sorry for the TMI, but I especially hated running this week for a personal reason. Many of us call her Aunt Flow. For me, one of the best ways to prevent myself from ...

There are certain places where I love to run. Weedon Island Preserve is one of them. It's far enough away now that I don't often get to run there. Plus they don't allow dogs. Hubby and I decided to run there yesterday for about an hour. He knows the trails, luckily, because I would get extremely lost without him. The trail run is hubby's favorite type. I also love trail running. It's like an adventure. And Weedon is really pretty. My pace is much slower than hubby's, so he decided to make it more challenging for the first two miles. He filled a bag with forty pounds of sand. Then he put that bag in a backpack. Then he put that backpack on his back. Seriously, there is a 40 pound sandbag in his pack! Yes, hubby is hardcore. Those who know him will not be surprised by this. Me, on the other hand? I can barely carry myself during a run. So the first two miles, we were at my pace, but hubby kept up like a champ. And even sped up as we got ...