Last week I explored my early foray into this running life. This week we will jump ahead to the here and now, as I train for my first marathon.

I have been steadily running for 10 years now, and have run through different countries and cities around the world. It has been a great way to explore new places, and I am so glad I kept it up.

When I haven’t been training for a race, I try to stick with running 3 times during the week and a “long” run on Saturday or Sunday with my husband.

We run about 5 miles as our average during the week and anywhere from 8-10 miles for our long run.

Me? Run a Marathon?

So what made me want to run a marathon?

Last September I turned 50. Even though it wasn’t as big a deal to me as turning 40 (I HATED turning 40), I did have in my head I should do something to commemorate being half a century old.

The marathon was something I hadn’t really thought about, until a year and a half ago I decided the weight was creeping up on me and I needed to do something about it.

I don’t know what it is, but the year before I start a new decade of life I go into weight loss mode.

Since I was dieting and exercising more, I started running more as well. With that, I started noticing that I was getting faster. Which in turn made me want to become a better runner.

I am not by nature a competitive person. Except with myself. So as I started to run faster and longer, I would set higher and higher goals.

The idea that I could run a marathon started creeping in, and I thought about doing the Buffalo Marathon and what it would take to train for that.

The big problem… I was living in Shanghai and training for a marathon when there are days you aren’t supposed to go outside (because of air quality) was out of the question.

Then I turned 50 and a marathon became a bucket list item. I don’t actually have a bucket list, so that being the only thing on it makes it kind of hard to ignore, lol.

Around that same time we found out my husband’s job at his company was going to change and we no longer would be living in China.

I was upping my mileage quite a bit during the week and thrilled with how fast (relatively speaking) I was able to run for a sustained period of time. Then on Facebook the Buffalo Marathon ads kept coming up (pretty sure because I kept saying “marathon”).

I decided I could do it and should start training for it.  I wanted to experiment a bit with the training to be confident I could run that distance when the time came. So I put off actually signing up for it for about a month.

Once I signed up, training was a priority. I was able to run in Shanghai while we were wrapping up there, and I have kept up (mostly…these past two weeks have been awful with the weather and the flu).

Running consistently is one of the great benefits of training for a race.

Whether I was visiting my daughter and grandchildren in Antigua, vacationing in Key West, visiting my son in New York City or braving disgustingly cold temperatures here in Buffalo…I have trained. In most of those situations any other time, I MAY have gotten out there once or twice.

Many, many people run…love running…are dedicated to it… run much faster and longer than me…and never enter a race.

I am finding that for me, I do better having a goal to work toward.

Half-Marathon

So now I am 2.5 weeks from running the half-marathon that started it all. The Grand Island Half. There are some who advocate running a half as part of prep for a marathon and some that are against it. I am running it purely because I want to.

I am going to be smart about it, and not try to PR this one. It coincides with a 14-mile training run on my plan, so I am basically going to treat it as such. To help me do so, I have set my sights on running a half marathon in September and doing it in under 2 hours.

With a goal set, I will be much more relaxed about the Grand Island Half. I will use that to practice my fueling during a race. It’s been 3 years since my last half in Japan, and that one was a disaster.

It was too hot, not enough water stations and I was super crabby (lots of hills). So I am looking forward to hopefully an uneventful race.

My 6 pieces of Advice if you want to start running:

So, what is my advice for becoming a runner? Besides just do it?

1. 1. 1. While I started my running with the wrong clothes, wrong shoes, wrong socks…I DO think having some basics in the “right” category is a good thing! I DON’T think anyone has to spend hundreds of dollars on those, though! I’ve gotten things from Target and I’ve gotten things from Under Armor and they all have a place in the mix. I am picky (and thus spend a bit more) in the winter, because I want to be warm and dry. In the spring and summer, breathable tech fabrics come at many price points.
      2. Investigate jeffgalloway.com for the standard in the run/walk method. Even though I did this in my way at the beginning, it is a great introduction to running. There is an app I use when I do run/walks called “Intervals” that you can program to alert you to change-up what you are doing at lengths of time you input. So if I am doing a 60-minute run/walk and I want to run 8 minutes and walk 2 I can set the cycles to 6 and Interval 1 at 8 min. and interval 2 at 2 min. It will let you know when you are half way there and gives you a few seconds to switch. The paid version allows you to have numerous intervals set up, but the free version works well for walk/run (there is even a walk/run timer already set up in the system). This only seems to be available for Apple users, but you can Google “interval timers” and check out what is available for other types of users.
      3. Keeping hydrated is so important. Even in the winter, when it doesn’t feel like you are losing much, dehydration is still an issue. When you are first starting out, you probably are not running 10 miles a shot (by the way, you shouldn’t be!) It’s fine not to carry water with you in those circumstances, but do make sure to drink up when you get back. If you live in a hot area or it’s summer, think about getting a water belt or carry water with you. You will feel so much better if you stay hydrated!
      4. Have a plan, but have fun! Using a training plan is great, and I highly recommend it. It helps you stay focused and moving forward. Relying too much on it, though, can turn running into a job…and that’s no fun! Use your runs to see your city or town, stop and take pictures, stop and pet the puppy (with the owner’s permission, of course!) On some runs, I mentally tell myself this is for fun. It gives me “permission” to be more relaxed about it and not sweat it when I see a neighbor who wants to chat or even stop for a slice of pizza like my husband and I did a few weeks ago. We had to walk home (running while full of pizza is not happening), we were sweaty in the restaurant (but not too gross since it was freezing out) and we probably nixed any benefit to our bodies with the pizza and beer. But we had a blast!
      5. Running shoes are probably the most important start to run item you can buy. Today’s shoes are engineered for the runner, and take into consideration all kinds of variables. Go to a running store and get fitted for the best pair for you. You do not have to spend hundreds of dollars, but you also don’t want to just throw on any pair of sneakers, either. If your feet aren’t happy, you won’t run! You can read about running shoes and pronation here. I was surprised when I got serious about gear that I should be wearing 1/2 a size bigger running shoe than what I was (which explained why I had black toenails that were falling off).
      6. Do some research on running as you start the sport…but go ahead and start! Join our blog and ask questions, hop over to our YouTube channel and see what’s going on there. Join the Facebook page. I am amazed at how wonderful the running community is. I have an Instagram account full of runners and we follow each other on live runs from all over the world, runners have helped me in other countries (read about that here), and you will make friends at races even if it’s just for the duration of the race.

   The most important thing…if you want to run…RUN! Don’t worry about how you look doing it, don’t worry about how old or young you are, don’t worry about what anyone thinks. Run for you!