run, rest, eat, bitch, buy things, cross-train, blog, repeat.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Up Next: Half Marathon Training

AGAIN! I know.

So, I've been thinking a lot about what kind of runner I am, what kind of runner I want to be, and what kind of runner I can be. I fully believe that you can't really go after your goals without some self-awareness of knowing who and where the fuck you are to begin with.

Stolen from: Poorly Drawn Lines

Here's a secret: I think the half marathon is my race distance. And, not just because I crushed one this spring, but because that distance has always gotten me the best race times. And of course, because I'm a self righteous, unsatisfied bitch... I'm not happy about it.

It bums me out. Like, who gives a shit about half marathons? It's not even considered a WHOLE race. It's called a HALF for chrissakes! (Don't even get me started on the "mini marathon" bullshit). Nobody goes around calling a 5K a half 10K. I mean, of course, I have to be good at the one race distance that is the ugly, shorter step-child of another race. Ugh.

As much as I'd like to be good at the hardcore distance of a Marathon or the speedy, glamorous distance of the 5K, I just haven't had the races to confirm that. So, for now, I'm going to accept the fact that the Half is my distance and kinda/sorta embrace it.

Now, this doesn't mean that I'm not going to continue to beat my head against the wall of the marathon and other race distances (hopefully with proper, legitimate training in the other distances, I'll eventually breakthrough). But, why not keep pushing at the distance that seems to suit me the best?

All this to say... my next goal race is The Santa Rosa Half Marathon in August. KoB and I and four of our most fun running friends are heading to wine country to run and drink wine and eat food and drink wine.

So, what's my goal for the race? That's where things get a little interesting. For my current PR, I worked my ass off for 4 months and I had Steve pace me. The likelihood of me getting a PR on my own on just 2 months of training seems pretty unlikely. But, what the hell? I'm going to give it a go. I'm excited to get back onto the serious training wagon and am willing to put in the work to see what I can do in two months time!

Training officially started Monday! Here we go again...


2 comments:

Meredith said...

The half marathon is hands down my favorite race distance. You can still be a runner doing "just a half". Who cares! Go crush it Amy!

Tanya said...

OMG!! A half marathon has the word "marathon" in it!!! Therefore, it's waaaaay more superior and important than any weenie-ass distance with a "k" attached to it.