The Anti-Running Runner

After my rare and delightful runner's high, I pretty much expected a runner's low. The twelve-miler was a week and three days prior to the Rock N Roll Half Marathon, so I decided to rest until the race. I ran one stair jog, but that was it. The half marathon was tons of fun, especially while running and chatting with my dear cousin, Alyssa. Like last year, they had bands every mile. Music helps mentally boost me. Catching up with Alyssa for 2:21:47 (our chip time) feeds my soul.  Lyssi and I having a ball. Thanks, Jeremy Carlson, for taking pictures! Our good friend, J.J., spotted us on the course, so we got to have some of the race documented. I don't like carrying things, such as phone/camera, so it's really nice to have friends taking photos. This was not a low after all, but nothing close to the high either. Around mile nine or ten, I felt the normal challenges of a half marathon. Legs hurting, my right glute started going numb, making it diffi...

Verse speaking to me: 1 Corinthians 9:26 Song speaking to me: Starálfur by Sigur Rós Today, the goal was twelve miles after work. My last twelve before St. Pete Rock N Roll Half. Thursday is not my early day, so hubby asked me to be careful running downtown. Inevitably, it would be dark when I finished. I estimated 7pm so he'd have an idea when to expect the call with a panting, "dun." He's got good reason for concern, as you will see later in the post. I don't even know if I can describe what happened. The entire experience was surreal. I started out kinda fast for me. Then I thought, just go with it. Maybe you can finish quicker, less running in the dark. If not, whatever. I'd slow down when I needed to. The weird thing is, I didn't need to. It was almost out-of-body, but not quite. I felt the visceral experience that is a runner's high, and I LIKED IT. Even when I got home, it didn't go away. So naturally, I made a video of my runner...

Hot, humid, and had to walk. There's the pain I've been waiting for! Yes, it was a tough one. And I expected it to be hard, so that probably helped me in the long run. This vlog was taken last Friday during a nine miler with a little walking. Even though I intended to run ten, I'm still happy with my progress. The St. Pete Rock N Roll Half is several weeks away. I've got time to keep building. In Orlando over the weekend, I got to cheer for my cousin, Alyssa, and her roommie, Jenni. They did The Color Run 5K with some 10,000 other people. That would be A/J (my heroes) that I've blogged about many times. Love these girls. They described the race as extremely casual and fun. Many walkers, some joggers, and four color stations where they spray/cover you. Even more coloring at the after party (pic). I definitely want to do it next year. There's one in St. Pete that my friend Rachel did but the race was already full. I better sign up early. Next F...

The conflict: to run or not to run In the time leading up to the Halloween Halfathon and the Women’s Half, I trained pretty well. At my speed, of course, but I was putting in the mileage that I needed to feel good for a half. After the Women’s Half (as noted in the last post), not so much running going on. A few days here and there, but not much mileage. The St. Pete Rock N Roll is not until February, so it’s been easy to push running off in the midst of the holidays. About four days leading up to Christmas day, hubby and I spent time with my family and new niece in Georgia. It was such a blessing, and we celebrated the birth of Christ together with a lot of great food and more great food. It was cold and rainy, but hubby and I managed one short run during the visit. The trip involved nine and a half hours of driving time each way. Friends and family took care of our animals. We dropped off/picked up animals on the way, adding to our travel time. Sadly, I believe ...

It’s been over a week, but I’m finally getting to blog about the Women’s Half Marathon in St. Pete! First of all, the weather could not have been more perfect. The cloud cover kept the sun away while a nice breeze kept us cool. It was actually too cool before we started, but after a mile we were grateful for it. Alyssa, my dear cousin, stayed with me during this race just like the Halloween Half three weeks prior. We chatted the entire time again (can you tell we are thisclose?) and missed most of the mile markers. That is the best way to run a race if you can, in my opinion. The only drawback was at the starting line. The corrals fed from the front. Meaning when we tried to get into corral 2, everyone had crowded to the front to the point that there was a line to get in. We had to elbow our way through the bodies, which is awkward and rude, but the only way we could get in. The space is always in the back of the corral, where they usually feed in people for races. So...