Tuesday's are HILLS day!

Memorial Drive Monster Stairs in the winter

Last night, I ran these stairs like they were going out of style. Today I feel powerful and alive. And busted! Good busted though ;)

Half Marathon training has been going so well. I have been very dedicated to the plan and I am starting to feel momentum. 

I remember being a gymnast and feeling the shift from 'everything being hard' to feeling like I was in a groove. I am starting to feel that shift happen in my running training, especially on the days when I am doing longer distances. I used to run 5km and pray for the end, but now I am finding that I start to feel warmed up after the 5km mark. 

The longest run I've done thus far is 16km. I've done it twice and both times I felt a tremendous sense of accomplishment and agony at the end! Can you say lead feet? * I'm laughing at myself because my villain's trying to tell me that 16km's is not that far, but I am not going to let it attack my victory. 

All of this running has started to make me curious about how far I can push myself. What's my max? What's my limit? What's my potential? I ask myself these questions a lot.

I am really enjoying having my plan on the fridge and being able to cross out each completed run. I'd recommend it to everyone! There's something very satisfying about looking at  a bunch of X's. If I didn't have the plan, I would definitely not be feeling the same amount of progress that I do now. Being able to look back at all of the work I've done is motivating. Also, being able to look forward at what's to come allows me to mentally prepare. 

Next Saturday, September 3rd, is an 18km run and I know that I need to set myself up for success the night before. I used to feel such a sense of pride and self-confidence when I was a gymnast and I would have my 'One Beer Only Friday's'. I would go out with my friends and they would all get pretty saucy, but I would only have one pint. There was nothing that could steer me away from my goals. I couldn't even be tempted because when you know what you want and what you are working towards then that becomes your focus. It's a game of priorities.

Training for this half marathon has also made me realize how much I crave potential. I notice the competitor starts to come out of me from time to time. The other morning, when we were running our Saturday 16km, I noticed that we were a bit behind our pace from the previous week. I didn't want to come in over that time at the same distance and so something inside of me started to scream, "PUSH! MOVE! GO!" I had to listen. I broke away from the group to complete the last 3km on a faster pace so that I could come in under our previous weeks time. There's just something inside of me that needs this sense of progress and accomplishment. Thankfully, I know this quirk about myself and I know I need to fuel it. Otherwise I would have felt guilt the rest of day knowing that I "could have", but didn't.

Having a goal is great. Pushing my own limits is even better. Working towards something is a requirement in my life. And I am so glad that I have an amazing group of friends who are doing this together.