Run Raise Fun: A commendable demonstration of maturity and determination

My apologies for the lapse in updates. Trust that I have been having lots of fun since my last post. Bachelorette parties, weddings, barbecues, woodland vacations, birthday parties, the return of the rain, and reading. And still almost-daily running.

The last two weeks have been a satisfying opportunity to test my willingness to keep up with TNT's running schedule, despite the aforementioned other very important priorities. Over the last two weeks, I've gone to the following lengths to keep running:

Running in Lakewood - This may seem like small potatoes, but given that there was a shooting nearby the week prior and that there were many more fun activities to distract me while there for the Mitchell-Sparkman wedding, this accomplishment was actually huge french fries.

Running the Day After - It is social/celebration city up in here lately. I have been staying up past my bedtime, dancing like a 6-year-old on Redbull (throwing some elbows, if you will), filling my skin and bones with decadently salty, fatty party foods, and nursing my favorite adult beverages. Yet, with a commendable demonstration of maturity and determination, I still run it like it's hot the next day. Fo shizzle.

Running on Staycation - Our exclusive vacation club (Pantiiiiiies!!!!) decided to stay-cation this year--an affordable and creative alternative to our usual high-rolling luxury vacation. We rented a charming cabin near Mount Rainier National Park and supported our vacation habit almost entirely with board games, a cooler of cheap beer, great conversation, and a commitment to mentally blocking all responsibility for the weekend. I blocked all responsibility except for that to my training. I was a nerd and brought running to the staycation. And although the club should have been firmly against such responsibility, they were actually very supportive. Mike ran with me one day and Nicole & Sarah-Jane ran with me another. It made me feel very loved and supported to have them join in my endeavor for the weekend (thanks guys!!!).

Running in the Rain - It finally happened. It rained again, and I had to run in it. I feel the power of being a real runner growing in me now as I recount the exhibition of talent and coolness. Running in the rain is hard core, man.... In all honesty though, I ran no more than 5 minutes in a refreshing and well-timed mist. But I was prepared for and committed to running in the worst. When I set out on that partly sunny trek, I knew I was walking into a potential grade 1 storm. And that mental attitude is an achievement in itself. Baby steps. And next thing you know, I'm awesome. Woo!

And now I will close with a very important FAQ: It seems everyone wants to know how far and how often I've been running.

How often: If you read my blog enough (*ahem*), you know that I run almost-daily. In case that's not concrete enough for all of you, I shall break it down: I run 5 days a week, taking Monday and Friday off to rest my marathon muscles.

How far: I actually don't blame anyone for asking this. It's a very normal question. And I love that my answer is basically that I don't really know.

TNT is focused on the duration of the run, not the distance. They started us at 30 minutes 5 days a week. Right now we're up to 40 minutes 3 days a week (the normal run), 75 minutes once a week (the long run), and 30 minutes once a week (the short run). My pace is about 10 minutes per mile, so I'm running about 4 miles on normal days and 7.5 miles on long days.

The time for each long run changes each week - it will increase and decrease in a way that lets us build and heal our marathon muscles in perfect preparation for race day. Most runners don't actually run the full marathon distance during training, not until race day that is. My longest pre-marathon run is scheduled for Saturday 9/12, when I'm set to run 270 minutes. Ouch. (Something tells me they expect my pace to slow quite a bit that day.)