Sunday was the day!

I completed my first half marathon! Back at the beginning of the summer I had visions of writing "I ran my first half marathon!" But that didn't happen, so I am very pleased to say I completed it! It was a very long 13.1 miles and I do remember thinking that it was the worst idea I've ever had several times in that 13.1 miles. I also remember thinking that my kiddos would be so disappointed if their daddy and Aunt Katie (who both completed it as well) both got medals for finishing and mommy didn't, but I made it. It wasn't fast, and it wasn't pretty, but I did finish and I'm so happy that I stuck with it even though there were several moments that I wanted to quit. I've got a few blisters on my feet and my legs are still a little sore (much better than yesterday!), but I'm ready to do it again. Next phase of training starts on Monday :)

First 5k

Is now behind me! It was actually a pretty nice race, the course was through the North Carolina Zoo and in the morning you get to see a few animals up and moving around. The only problem- lots of hills! I was reminded how much I like running in Virginia- nice and flat here by the beach :) I met my goal of being finished in under an hour- 54 minutes to be exact. May not sound like a lot to many, but I was happy with it- it was definitely a run/walk situation, so I was satisfied with that finishing time. Next up will be the Rock and Roll Half- which will also be a run/walk, but this one I will just be happy to finish!

School starts for my kiddos after Labor day, so I will be able to have a more consistent training program that will allow for me to meet my goal of completely running the rest of the races on my list!

A New Goal

I'm a military wife. Deployments have been a part of our lives for the past 6 years. All of the deployments have somehow also related to pregnancy for me so far. The first deployment I was pregnant and had my second son in the middle of that one. The second deployment, we found out right before he left and I had my third son about a month after he came home. The third deployment got cut a little short because he was sent to a school (home for about a month between the deployment and school) and in that time got pregnant with our fourth child and only daughter, who I had about 3 weeks before the fourth deployment.

Deployment #5 is coming up starting in January of 2012, and my goal for this one is very different from bringing a new child into this world- I'm going to run one half marathon every month that my husband is gone. My first one after the deployment starts is the Inaugural Tinkerbell Half Marathon at Disneyland. February will be the Disney Princess Half. March is the Shamrock Half Marathon and April is the Flying Pirate Half at the Outer Banks in North Carolina. I'm still looking for ones for the rest of the months (he'll be gone until October 2012 or so).

First 5k is this weekend and my first half is in less than 3 weeks- getting nervous and excited!

2 Days in a Row

Makes me very happy! Once again, I did my battle with myself as to if I should get out of bed and run or stay in bed and just relax. Thankfully, the get out of bed and run won out! Again, not fast, and not far, but it was a run, and it counts. I did 2.35 miles in about 30 minutes. My goal right now is to be able to do the 5k that I am signed up for in a few weeks in 45 minutes or less. We'll see...

And Starting Again...

So I'm a little less than 4 weeks away from my first 5k, and less than 6 weeks away from my first half. It is safe to say that I'm pretty nervous right now. Family circumstances being what they are- completely unpredictable given 4 kids, a military husband, a home based business that I can never predict the 'busy times' and a rental house- well, let's just say it's been one thing after another lately. So I've made a plan- and that is to run as much as possible this week in trying to get a decent time out of my 5k :) Today's run was 2.19 miles, so not a lot, but more than none :) Here's to Tuesday....

Nothing Makes You Run Faster....

...than a thunderstorm :)

It wasn't a bad evening to start out on a run- it was supposed to rain this evening, but nothing on the radar when we started out. Then we got about 2.4 miles in- and the lightning starts. The wind starts going crazy as well, and of course, we were running into the wind. Most frustrating because the first 2.4 miles in were pretty good- I actually ran over a mile without stopping. Then took a little walking break, and was able to run over a mile again. So the wind and rain actually threw a wrench into our run and our pace. But oh well, now I know I can run over a mile without stopping! It's not a fast mile, but it is a mile :) And it just starts with one!

Getting Back To It

Because of one thing or another (and a bit of laziness), I haven't really run in about 2 weeks. What makes it really hard is feeling like I'm starting back at square one again. It's frustrating to feel behind now, especially when I was feeling like I was really making progress. Oh well, no point in looking backwards- only 40 days until my first 5k, and 55 days until the half- just gotta keep going.... at least I actually ran today