fitness

I’ve been an avid runner since my high school cross country days. Well, ok, sometimes senior year I would hide in the woods during practice and jump back into the run on the last lap, so maybe “avid” is a strong word…but suffice to say, I’ve been regularly running for years. And for almost as long, I’ve tossed around the idea of doing a half marathon, but just never pulled the trigger on doing it.

Then along came Saint Patrick’s Day weekend 2012. As a proud Italian-Portuguese-American, it was my cultural obligation to get hammered. I had no choice, guys. A disgusting amount of Bailey’s and countless beers later, I was doing my usual browse-the-internet-in-bed-before-passing-out-with-my-contacts-in routine. You can probably guess where this is going…

I woke up with my debit card on the pillow next to me and immediately it all came rushing back to me. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE NOW, DRUNK NICOLE?! My online banking account confirmed it: I signed myself up to run the Amica Half Marathon in Newport, RI.

Compared to the things I did while drunk in college, this little stunt shows huge signs of maturity. Not gonna lie, I’m kinda proud of myself. And I’ll feel even more proud in October when I finish my first half marathon!

I don’t want to take away from the pace of pumps & iron with boring half-marathon training posts that the majority of you probably don’t even care about, but for the runners out there (and for my own personal benefit to help me stay accountable during the next few months), I’m going to do a weekly Sunday update of how I’m progressing. I’ll accompany each post with something everyone will find useful—playlists, new running routes to check out, etc.—and if nothing else, you can all get a good laugh as I (inevitably) fail to stick to my planned training schedule for various ridiculous reasons. I laid out my training based on the resources at CoolRunning.com. I’m going to adjust it at the start of each week to accommodate my social schedule because, hey, I’m a disciplined athlete, what can I say.

Monday: Felt great. Then again, it was day 1—I’d be seriously worried if I didn’t feel great. I ran in the morning before work and on my lunch break did my 30-minute kettle bell workout.
Tuesday: This run was four miles of absolute torture. I did it on my lunch break in the 86-degree midday heat, my Nike+ GPS running app was acting up and wouldn’t let me listen to music while I ran, my tendonitis was acting up and to top it all off, I was PMS-ing like a certified psychopath. I was shocked when I saw it only took me 35 minutes because it seriously felt like 35 years.
Wednesday: Weather was perfect for running at 5:30AM. Fixed the Nike app (if you ever encounter the same problem, press your iPhone’s lock button, NOT the app’s lock button in the lower corner of the screen). Great run to start my day! I was still feeling a little sore from Monday’s kettle bell workout (especially my inner thighs) so kept it light(er) with my plank workout.
Thursday: I did the Olympic Workout I posted yesterday on my lunch break.
Friday: After attending a booze cruise around Boston Harbor Thursday night, I can’t exactly say I was excited for this run. But it ended up turning my whole day around and gave me a much needed post-lunch-break energy boost.
Saturday: Great early morning long run.
Sunday: Rest.