In a rut

And I really need to get out of it and find my groove again. I'm still running (although not that often), and completed the Rockford Half Marathon last weekend. I survived, and it wasn't my worst half so far. But I haven't stuck with anything consistent lately, and it's frustrating me. I also have that pesky 15 lbs hanging around that I can't seem to part with, and that's bugging the heck out of me, too.

As we inch even closer to June I'm both excited and dreading starting up marathon training again - and it has to do with that rut. I'm not as concerned with endurance, since I've managed to pull off 13.1 miles during s run. But I'm so tired of being mediocre....being the one that everyone is waiting for to finish. I always say my expectations are low (namely finish and don't die), but since this will most likely be my marathon I want to be proud of my effort. 

Now I'm not going to to go all crazy and say I want to qualify for Boston, but I'd like to shave some time off my PR of 6:11. I know with some hard work, cross-training, and dedication I can do this. I've already signed up for Coach Brendan's virtual training, and I'm planning to join the Fox River Trail Runners Fall Endurance training. I also signed up for the Dick Pond Fast Track team, so I'm finally adding in speedwork.

It's time to step out of my comfort zone and put some effort into my training. And healthy eating has to become the priority as well. Hopefully with the right foods and training this will be the year I've been hoping for.

And so it begins...again

So it's about that time to start marathon training for the fourth year in a row. It's so hard to believe we're already into May! When I decided back in January (oh, who are we kidding?...I decided about 10 minutes after finishing last year) to run the Chicago Marathon, it seemed like it was soooooo far away. But after a less than stellar few months of running, it's come flying back at me, and pretty much smacked me in the face. 

The positive note is that I really haven't been dealing with any injuries this year. Fortunately I've been able to keep running, but it hasn't been that consistent. Sure, I've run almost every weekend, but my midweek runs have been pretty much non-existent. Most days during the week I'm not getting home until close to 7:00, and I've only been able to run in the mornings a couple of times. But with school wrapping up soon I should have a bit more flexibility. 

In the meantime I've got to get back to cross training. It definitely has helped, so I need to make it a priority on my non-running days. And the healthy eating is getting back on track right now - lots of fruits, veggies, and healthy protein are now fully stocked! After all, swimsuit season is just around the corner - and I've got a loooong way to go to get back to my goal.