I have this method of signing up for and running races. See, ever since the first race I decided to do, I’ve frequently signed up for races when I wasn’t able to run that distance. Because what fun is it to only sign up for races at your current level? I’m the kind of person that needs motivation. I mean, I can motivate myself I guess, but the threat of going to a race that I’m not ready for—that’s a bigass reason for me to get my butt up and running.
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The first time I did it was when I ran a 5k. I had only run a little over 2 miles at that point, and it was usually a run-walk combo of running up to five or ten minutes at a time and walking for a minute or two and then running again. I signed up for a 5k that was still several weeks away and knew that I’d train up to the appropriate distance. Still, when I ran that race, that was the first time I’d run 3 miles straight.
The next time was when I did a 5-miler turkey trot just a few weeks later. I knew if I could run 3 miles, I could run 5 miles. And I did! And then I ate everything: the real joy that is being a runner.
That was November, and I could run 5 miles. I figured, if I can run 5 on Thanksgiving, I can probably run 10 by May, right? Even if I walk the last 3, I’ll still be glad I did it. So I signed up for a half marathon.
Train later!
After a string of half marathons following the first one (which went terribly, by the way), I signed up for a full marathon. I figured, if I can run 13 miles, I can run 26, right? So I did.
But see, that’s the fun of it. Life isn’t about knowing that you’ll succeed and doing things you’ve already done. Life is about taking chances and pushing yourself and having fun being a crazy person who sometimes runs 26 miles.
As for right now, I’ve had a baby and run some half marathons since then. For a while, I was pretty good at keeping up my long distances. But then eating everything happened and we all caught like 6 different colds and life got in the way. Now it’s 2016 and I have a whole new year of races and fun and crap and adversity and colds ahead of me! Time to start signing up for races!
I think I’ve made up my mind to do another full marathon this year. I was training for the Bayshore Marathon when I conceived my son easier and sooner than expected, so I never ran the marathon (I got too busy eating spaghetti in bed and taking frequent naps). I watched my friends run Bayshore and I’ve decided that I’d rather do a different full. It’s a great race, but my heart is at Sleeping Bear. 😉
I think I might die if I even ran 6 miles right now, but I’ve got 9 months to train for it, and I know how amazing the course is, and how much I love that race, so I’m going to do it. Let’s do it!