Reasons this blog is being posted a little late this evening:

• I debated all day whether or not I should register for the half marathon today, and I didn’t want to write my blog until I had made my decision
• Once I started registering, I was faced with a bunch of decisions I didn’t think I’d have to consider (i.e. Did I want to buy a finisher’s t-shirt?)
• I had some other things I needed to do before I worked on this blog
• I accidentally took a nap

Anyway, if you read the title of this post, you know what my big news is… I OFFICIALLY REGISTERED FOR THE HALF MARATHON!

I really debated whether or not I should sign up today – or really at all. Today was my first official half marathon training day, so I’m still a little worried that I won’t be able to keep up with the training. However, I think I will have more motivation now, especially if I look at my bank account balance after that registration fee goes through!

Overall, I am really excited. I have been dreaming about running a half marathon for at least four years now, and I’m glad I will be able to accomplish this goal in about 16 weeks.

Okay, that’s enough about what I did today. Let me tell you about this past week, because it was also pretty monumental.

This Week’s Accomplishments

So, I started last week extremely determined to complete all of my workouts. The weather for the week was absolutely beautiful and even my weather app said the running conditions would be phenomenal all week, so there were no excuses.

My main goal for Monday was to just run outside. I think I talked a little about this last week, but I have been very intimidated by the idea of running alone outside. Which is sad, because running outside is awesome, and something that I will definitely need to do more of if I’m going to successfully run this half marathon.

However, on Monday, I did it. I ran outside. I quit about three times during my workout. I was running up and down a hill near my house, and it was hard. I ran up and down about three times, and then I walked. Then I tried running up the hill, and then I walked down the hill, and then I walked up the hill. Then I stopped. Then I ran down the hill, and walked back up it.

This continued for about 26 minutes. In that time I averaged a 14:17 minute per mile pace and covered about 1.84 miles. It wasn’t my strongest workout, but I didn’t stop completely until I felt good about myself. I hope that I will be able to keep this same attitude as I go into my future workouts.

Tuesday was another record-breaking day for me. Last week, I wrote about how I was now able to run for 30 minutes straight. Well, this week I pushed myself a little harder and managed to run three miles straight! This took me a little bit longer than 30 minutes, but I was still able to complete the full three miles.

One big thing I realized during this three mile run is that I can’t drink water and run at the same time. After I ran about two and a half miles, I wanted to take a quick sip of water, so I grabbed my water bottle and – without slowing down – managed to splash some water on my shirt. I then slowed down to a brisk walk for a few seconds so I could grab a quick sip and then returned to running.

My question is, do people actually run and drink water at the same time, or do they all take a quick walking break to drink their water?

I guess I’ll try practicing drinking water while running a little bit more, but if I can’t get it down it won’t be the end of the world.

I got another two mile workout in last week, and I also did a little bit of strength training – I guess that’s what I’ll call it. I used some light weights and did some lunges and stuff. It wasn’t anything super intense. I wanted to get in a couple more runs, but I didn’t. I don’t even have a good excuse for it either. I just didn’t make them priorities.

Wrap Up

That’s all for this week. I hope you have enjoyed following along with me so far. Also, last week I got my very first comment on a post, so thank you! That was pretty cool. I realize I’ve been talking a lot about myself and my goals on here, but I would also like to hear from you in the comments. If you have any advice on training for a half marathon, or just want to tell me a little about your goals; I’d love to read about them in the comments.

Also, if you want to follow me on Instagram, you can do so @myrunningstart. I hardly ever post anything on there, so you’re not missing much.

Motivation Monday

“If we wait until we’re ready, we’ll be waiting for the rest of our lives.” – Lemony Snicket

This quote has been a favorite of mine for some time now. I feel like I spend a lot of time dreaming and hoping for the right time to act on my goals, when really there is never a perfect time to do anything. I almost didn’t sign up for the half marathon today, because I wasn’t sure I was “ready.”

But when would I be ready? Would I feel ready after I ran five miles? Six? Ten? Eventually, the registration price would’ve increased again, and it was already higher than I would’ve liked it to have been. Plus, I’ve been saying for months how I wanted to run a half marathon this year. I’ve been running and building a base for months, (not that I need to tell you any of this, since you’ve been following along with my blog every week, right?) so if I didn’t feel ready now, I certainly wouldn’t feel ready any time soon.

Today, I did it. I signed up for my first half marathon. Now, I just need to run my butt off over the next 16 weeks.

Week 17:  
Miles run this week: 6.84
Miles run total: 66.14
Overall mood: Excited