Road to the Portland Half Marathon

Shortly after moving to the Pacific Northwest in January, I received a call from my brother in Cincinnati telling me that he was coming out to run the Portland Marathon in October. I was so excited at the thought of his visit I committed to run the half marathon.  I had to register quickly before the event sold out so I did not have a lot of time to consider what that meant.  

Unfortunately I had not run consistently in over three years. I was heavier than I had ever been in my life (never lost my baby weight...yes, I realize my son was almost two years old, don't judge). The reality of what I had just done began to set in.  

But instead of succumbing to the fear of the pain that was sure to lie ahead, I set a goal to run a sub 2 hour half marathon and lose 25 pounds. 

I began my training very simply:

1. Have fun
2. Run comfortably
3. Be healthy
4. (Maybe) Worry about pace

I left my running watch at home so I wouldn't get caught up in pace.  I ran for periods of time instead of distance tracking it with the stopwatch on my phone. And quite honestly for the better part of the next two months I hurt a lot.  But slowly I got stronger and it really did become fun again.  I was amazed by how the muscle memory set in and the old form started coming back.  By late spring I was running 3 days a week, cross training 2 days a week, I was eating better and feeling great.

By the end of July I felt ready test my progress and run a half marathon in Camas WA. I broke two hours. By September I had reached my weight loss goal and I was ready to take on the Portland Half Maratho, and just maybe put up a good time.

No matter how far away from your fitness goals you may be, if you stay focused on having fun, running comfortable and being healthy, you'll be amazed at what your body can do.