That, my friends, is my signed waiver for the marathon. After being selected to run on the team, the next step was to sign all of the paperwork and make my individual deposit. Truthfully, it took me close to two weeks to take those final steps, and I might have felt faint as I walked out of the building (and maybe contemplated "What in the hell did I just sign myself up to do?") but now that the reality has set in, I am so excited and ready.
Guarantee that that will come and go as the training kicks into high gear, but oh well-- I'll revel in the feeling while it lasts.
For those of you who know me well, I have not always been a runner, hence the title of this blog: "I wouldn't run if you chased me." That used to be my tagline. I legitimately would not run across the street if a car was speeding towards me.
When I was in elementary school, I would fake being sick from the tire swing so I wouldn't have to run races or laps. Dear God, the laps around the Cater track...
When I was in middle school, I played the cello and clarinet, and took tennis as an elective-- basically, the least physically active activities that anyone could attempt. (Sidenote: I sat the tennis bench because I refused to run for the ball.)
When I was in high school, I was on the dance team. Considering that I'm from Texas, "dance team" consisted of parading around on the football field at halftime in white cowboy boots and sequins. While the experience did perhaps make me a bit more athletic (and brought me to some of my very best friends), it did not make me an athlete... nor did I find my rhythm (go figure).
The first year of college came and went, and then I moved to Boston. Boston is what one might call a runners town. Even in the dead of winter, it is a given to see the hardcore devotees navigating the icy sidewalks in their spandex (that is cray-cray; I cannot even shuffle steadily on the ice). As I began to notice how common of an activity it is here, I let myself entertain the thought of giving it a shot. It also gave me a good answer when people asked what I was doing in my free time as a new Bostonite because "Oh, just touring the city" is only valid for so long.
The summer of 2010, I ran my first 5k. Several others followed and the summer of 2011 brought my first 5-miler, the winter of 2012 brought my first 4-miler and 10k (in rapid succession), and now the fall of 2012 will bring my first marathon. Notice how I skipped over a half? Yes, I'm still on the lookout for a good half marathon to run mid-August-- it's written into my training schedule as a good checkpoint to determine how I'm feeling with the distance, the longer runs, etc.
This is huge for me, taking on this goal. My free time has been occupied with reading marathon books on my Kindle and fine-tuning my running playlists to push me through the tough days ("Eye of the Tiger" is a given, as is any and all Britney). As a person, I'm a lot of things, and until the last few years, I never ever would have admitted that "a runner" would be a part of that list, better yet "a long distance runner" and EVEN BETTER YET "a marathoner." I'm not there yet... but I will be.
There have been lots of questions about the distance... I think that the distance is something that is in the back of my mind but hasn't fully registered. I know that in 143 days, I'll be close to finished with running 26.2 miles, and that is unbelievable. Truly-- I can't wrap my head around it. Since the training hasn't "officially" started yet (I'm sticking to easy runs and lots of cross training and stretching in the meantime), the idea of tackling that many miles doesn't really seem real yet. I'm looking at my schedule and in 9 weeks, I have a 14 mile Saturday long run. That, my friends, is what I call intense. The longest training run that I'll have is 22 miles, and they say that adrenaline and conditioning is what pushes you through the final 4.2 of the race. In 20 weeks, that will likely make a lot more sense.
More than anything, I want to thank each and everyone one of you who wandered over to this little blog. Whether you're my family or a friend, a blogger or a fellow runner, thank you. It is 152% true that without such a fabulous support system, I wouldn't be able to do this, and I don't mean the fundraising part. The people that I'm talking about are those who are cheering me on and encouraging me without anything really having started yet. Support is what makes this happen-- it is so appreciated.
Since this blog will serve as my own little journal throughout this experience, I intend to update daily as my training goes along. There will be good days, amazing days, and I guarantee that there will be awful days, and I will be honest every step of the way. Few things irritate me more than reading about a runner who's training for a race and never has a negative remark. Seriously? Even the world's most elite runners have off days; everything is not roses all of the time. So... be prepared for the thorns.
Here we go!
There have been lots of questions about the distance... I think that the distance is something that is in the back of my mind but hasn't fully registered. I know that in 143 days, I'll be close to finished with running 26.2 miles, and that is unbelievable. Truly-- I can't wrap my head around it. Since the training hasn't "officially" started yet (I'm sticking to easy runs and lots of cross training and stretching in the meantime), the idea of tackling that many miles doesn't really seem real yet. I'm looking at my schedule and in 9 weeks, I have a 14 mile Saturday long run. That, my friends, is what I call intense. The longest training run that I'll have is 22 miles, and they say that adrenaline and conditioning is what pushes you through the final 4.2 of the race. In 20 weeks, that will likely make a lot more sense.
More than anything, I want to thank each and everyone one of you who wandered over to this little blog. Whether you're my family or a friend, a blogger or a fellow runner, thank you. It is 152% true that without such a fabulous support system, I wouldn't be able to do this, and I don't mean the fundraising part. The people that I'm talking about are those who are cheering me on and encouraging me without anything really having started yet. Support is what makes this happen-- it is so appreciated.
Since this blog will serve as my own little journal throughout this experience, I intend to update daily as my training goes along. There will be good days, amazing days, and I guarantee that there will be awful days, and I will be honest every step of the way. Few things irritate me more than reading about a runner who's training for a race and never has a negative remark. Seriously? Even the world's most elite runners have off days; everything is not roses all of the time. So... be prepared for the thorns.
Here we go!
Katie's Fundraising Page
http://howtohelp.childrenshospital.org/newyork/page/Katherine-Fox.htm
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