26.2 Thoughts

One of my life goals has been to run a full marathon. Running has always been a part of my life. I can go weeks without running but I always find myself back at it. I find it relaxing to hit the pavement after a long day and just run.

After I ran my first half marathon I swore I'd never run another; but here we are today and I have two under my belt. When I registered for my first half, I didn't put much thought into it. The same was true for my second. I knew my body was capable of 13.1 miles. Leading up to both races I never followed a training plan; I just ran. To run a full marathon I know I won't be able to do that. I will actually have to stick to a routine in my running and prepare myself for each one of those miles. And if we are being honest with one another, that is why I haven't run a full marathon- because I am scared. The competitive side in my is afraid to finish last, or not finish at all. I am afraid I won't be mentally strong enough and give up. So instead I haven't even started.

Reflecting back on my first half marathon I remember how much pain my body was in. I remember feeling absolutely exhausted and I know that pain is only going to be two times worse if I double the mileage. But, with that I know when I finish it will be that much sweeter.

This post is extremely out of the ordinary. It doesn't contain recipes or the latest book I'm reading. Instead this is me holding myself accountable. This is me finally starting. I am going to reach this goal and finally quit being scared and run a full marathon.

Today I purchased Hal Higdon's marathon training plan. The plan is set-up to be ready to run a marathon in four months. After looking at races today I have found a marathon to run in April. Although this is way more than 4 months out this gives me time to reach this goal.

Anything you read about setting goals they say you should write them down. Goals that are written down are more permanent. So I've written my goal down. It's permanent. Cheers to accomplishing it!