Getting closer to my 2nd half!

Only 5 days to go till the Chilly Half!

I did 10km today, and felt REALLY good, so I think I should be in decent shape for the race. I'd love to beat my time from Miami but with the lack of training I've been doing that may not be realistic, but oh well.... not the end of the world!

Another couple of photos from Miami

I have resigned myself to the fact that...

I'm just not going to be as prepared as I should be for next weekend. I got out Monday and ran a whole 4.5 km (and was miserable the entire way), then didn't run till yesterday. I did 7 km yesterday and it was actually a really good run so at least I know that I haven't completely un-done all my hard work!

No running today... too cold and windy. My plan is to get out Sunday for 6, then 10 Tuesday, 6 Wednesday and 4 Friday. We'll see if I actually manage to do them all.

So much for that

My last post, that is. Since those 14K I've been sitting on my behind and doing nothing. I had a terrible weekend in terms of eating and feel like I've gained 10 pounds.

I am going to FORCE myself to get out and do my long run (18-20 km) tomorrow. The Chilly Half is only 2 weeks away so I should be starting to taper, but the fact is, I've been tapering for the past 2 weeks... not good...

Why am I feeling so unmotivated these days????

My second half marathon!

Is coming up in exactly 3 weeks!

I slacked off a bit with the running this past week, as the weather was pretty yucky, plus I was away for 2 days, but got back to it today and did my 14 km I was supposed to do. It was actually pretty nice for running - around 0 degrees and sunny - but the sidewalks were a bit slippery, which is never a good thing.

I plan to get in ALL of my training runs for the next few weeks, in the hopes of shaving that minute and 39 seconds off my time!

First real run since Miami

Other than our pathetic (1 mile) attempt to run on the cruise, I haven't been out at all since the half marathon. I got out and did 11km today and it felt really good. The temperature was above freezing for a change so that was nice... the sidewalks were in pretty icky condition... slushy/icy in some places and 6 inches of water in others, but it was still a good run, despite the wet cold feet.

I have my Chilly Half Marathom coming up on March 1st, so I'm trying to basically continue my training without taking too much of a break or a reduction in mileage. I'm cutting back a bit on my shorter runs, as I don't want to end up with an injury but I'm trying to keep up the distance with the long ones.

It's supposed to be ok weather tomorrow but then Wednesday is supposed to be a high of -13. Yuck! I think Wednesday might be my day off for this week!

Mel and I before the race - aren't we pink???

Miami Half Marathon

I can now say I'm officially a Half Marathoner! What an amazing race!

We started out before dawn (had to be in the corrals by 5:55) but neither of us could sleep anyway so getting up wasn't a big deal. There were 15,500 people running so it was a bit of a zoo near the start line, although it was very well-organized. The atmosphere was great - everyone was excited to be there. The temperature was also perfect - about 13 degrees.

The race started at 6:15 but because of the number of people, it was almost 6:30 before we even reached the start line. The first part of the course was incredible, running across the bridge beside the cruise ships. Because it was so early, it was still dark but the ships were all lit up and looked so pretty! The support along the course was good too - there was a police boat in the water along beside us, sounding its siren at everyone. There were 3 helicoptors hovering above us as we ran across the bridge. Really neat!

Running along Ocean Drive was fun - all kinds of little cafes and restaurants, with people sitting outside cheering us on.

At about the 18km mark, I was starting to get really tired. I knew I'd be able to finish but my pace was starting to slow down and I felt like I needed more frequent walk breaks. Luckily, it was also at about that point when there started to be more people lining the course and cheering us on so that motivated me to keep moving.

I finished in 2:31:39. I had been hoping for 2:30 but since it was my first one, I was happy just to have finished it.

All in all, it was a great race and one I wouldn't mind doing again some year.

Tropical 5K Results

Bib Number: 3078
Time: 37:38
Category Place (F35-39): 75/112

Miami Half Marathon Results

Bib Number: 20479
Chip Time: 2:31:39
Place: 6415/9677
Gender Place: 3002/5250
Division Place (F35-39): 544/849