Run Lauren Run

I ran in my first Half Marathon this past weekend. 13.1. miles and I thought I did all right. The course was pretty flat, with the exception of one LONG hill near the halfway point. My finishing time was 2 hours 7 minutes. I had initially hoped I could break 2 hours, but realized early on that missing the week and a half of training wasn't going to allow that to happen. I still feel good about my time and am happy with the pace I kept. My knees didn't give me too much trouble, but my legs definitely got tired. By mile 9 I was struggling a bit. As I was struggling to put one foot in front of the other, I couldn't help but think, "how the heck am I going to run twice this distance?" 26.2 miles; with just one freaking month left in my training. I couldn't help but think, maybe these 13.1 should have been easier. But, they weren't terrible. I was able to push it at the end through the finish line and I felt fine afterward, other than just feeling totally...

Starting something new can feel great. If you are anything like me, you get a burst of energy and excitement from dreaming up new goals and then beginning them. That's how it was when I began marathon training. I was excited. I looked forward to waking up early for runs. I was pumped up when I ran my first long run of 6 miles. My body was still relatively comfortable during runs and I was free of aches and pains. I really didn't need to do much of a warm up or cool down, since my distances were short. But then, about two weeks ago, I left the beginning and entered into the middle of my training. My runs were getting longer and my knees were getting sorer. I was finally forced to take the time to stretch after a work out. And we're not just talking about a quick 5 minute cool down, but like 20 minute routines. I've also had to foam roll regularly. Foam rolling is basically inflicting pain on yourself in order to break up the muscles and get them ready to perform ...