Half Crazy

Call me crazy, but I am now registered for Half Marathons in September, October and November. Here's the logic (I can picture my husband raising one eyebrow questioning the wisdom of such a move already):

September - Oak Brook Half Marathon
I've mentioned this one before; this has been in the works for awhile. You would think that since it's been in the works for awhile that I might be better prepared. Or prepared somewhat. Or at all. I've run here and there, but not with the consistency you need for a Half Marathon. My half-ass training for the Half is partly due to me nursing my IT band injury and partly due to our vacation turning into a vacation from running too. So, I'm scared. I'm scared at a dismal performance, a miserable time to the finish and possibly injuring myself more. It is a nice race in that it's close to home, my husband (he's running it too) and I have a hotel room right near the Start and it looks like it will be a pretty course. And while I don't want to throw the registration money out the window, I have to say that if my husband begged out of this, I would beg out too. The other option is to go have a good time, actually enjoy getting a good night sleep before a race and go as far as I feel comfortable, even if that's only to mile 8.

Yes, I'm torn about this.

October - Monster Dash Half
This looks like a fun race on Halloween (and it will be done early enough so not to interrupt with the kids' trick-or-treating.) I wanted to do a run on October 9, the same weekend as the Chicago Marathon to keep my mind off the fact that once again, I'm not meeting my Marathon goal this year but turns out that an October 9 Half will conflict with my son's football game. So, on a whim, I registered for this.

What can I say, they got me with the swag.

November - Schaumburg Turkey Trot Half
The Saturday after Thanksgiving, this means that I probably won't be among the 4 a.m. Black Friday shoppers in order to stay rested for the race. It's thisclose to my house so easy to get to and not too expensive. This one is 13 weeks out so I actually have time on my side to properly prep for this one.

So . . .crazy? Maybe. Stupid? Probably. I think with these races coming up though, it will help me stay on track to eat better, exercise more and for once in my years as a mother, drop some pounds and get fit. With that in mind, I've joined some blog world friends (and Suzanne!) and joined Courtney's 100 Day Challenge. We just started, it's Day 3 and so far, so (pretty) good. I made myself go to the gym to run after the kids went to bed even though I was exhausted, and I'm glad I went. I've also been watching what I eat pretty carefully. I messed up last night and ended up skipping my planned strength training class, but plan to pick up the class on Thursday. The 100 Day Challenge is definitely making me think of how I approach eating and exercise differently, even this early in the game. Thanks again to Courtney for the idea/organizing it. Check out my fellow participants' progress here.

Ok, I've finished my Whole Foods Asian Brown Rice salad (see I told you I was eating healthier!). Time to get back to work.

Jenn

p.s. Are you on Twitter? Follow me @jennrunschi