Day 1 - The Dreaded Treadmill

I hate running.  Well, I used to hate running - now I do it to stay in shape and feel good about myself.  A couple years ago my cousin, who I grew up with, went to high school AND college with (so he knew me PRETTY well) said, "when did you become a runner?"  My simple answer was, "when I stopped having friends around all the time to play with."  Seriously, anything that was NOT running was my favorite...volleyball, softball, basketball, dodgeball.  I know they all include running, but they are not focused around being good at running.

After a successful 2010 where I got married, dropped almost 30 pounds, and ran my first half marathon, I got a little bored.  In 2011 I thought I could run the Borgess Half Marathon and started training, but it didn't work out.  Admitting that you can not do what you said you were going to do is tough, but accepting it and moving on is usually better.  I bit off more than I could chew and had a lot of pain as I started running.  Although half marathon number 2 did not come in 2011, I did run the 10K at the Kalamazoo Klassic and ran my first 5-mile race at the Schoolcraft Firecracker 5-Miler.

Instead I focused my energy on assistant coaching Girls on the Run - an AMAZING program devoted to teaching girls confidence, how to live a healthy lifestyle and training toward the end goal of completing a 5K.  Running with those girls each day touched me and knowing they just needed someone to listen to them and understand them motivated me.

This year my sister encouraged me to be a Solemate.  I committed to running the Borgess Half Marathon that will be held on Sunday May 6 in Kalamazoo to help raise funds for GOTR.  No girl is turned away from this program, even if their families can not afford it.  During a data entry volunteer day I noticed how many girls want to participate, and are able to, because of donations raised by the Solemates.

Today was my first official day of my 10-week training plan.  It's been an awesome winter and I've run a lot of miles outside.  Of couse three days ago Mother Nature dumped snow on us and decided to initiate 30 mph gusts of wind today.  So, Day One of training was spent on the treadmill watching The Help which I can barely hear over the noise of the treadmill.  But I ran three miles nonstop (not a huge deal, except on a treadmill) and I'm proud of myself.  My biggest motivation was a GOTR donation I received via snailmail from an old high school friend with a heart-felt note that brought a few tears to my eyes.  It's now posted in the room with the treadmill to motivate me even more on cruddy days stuck inside.

Today I share with you my goals for my SECOND Half Marathon, a short 10 weeks away:

1) Raise at least $1000 for GOTR
2) Run the entire time
3) Cross the finish line sprinting with a smile on my face
4) Beat my time of 2:10:44 set at my 2010 half

Of the four goals listed, the fourth is definitely a stretch.  The Grand Rapids Half Marathon which I completed in 2010 is much flatter than the Borgess I'll run in May.  However, my training will be slightly different and the atmosphere will be amazing being in my "hometown" - besides, goals should be something we SHOOT for, not something we know we can easily attain.

I'm excited to share these next 10 weeks as I document my training, my successes, and undoubtly my disappointments.  But at the end of it I'll know I completed another tremendous milestone and raised money for an awesome cause.

Day 1 - number of vehicles that almost hit me - 0, I was on a treadmill