Once I got healthy, I realized that I’m stronger than I thought, and I have been learning that I love a good challenge. I have started setting goals for myself to see how close I can come to meeting, or exceeding my goal.

 

Now that I made a Half Ironman (Pumpkinman 70.3) my goal for this triathlon season, and I have agreed to run my first full marathon (Marine Corps, 2019), I need to figure out a training plan. My husband is going to run the Boston Marathon again this year, and he is a mentor for our City of Framingham team. Yesterday morning, Team Framingham was slated for a 10 mile run through the hills of Newton (Heartbreak Hill!). Since my events are several months after Boston, I don’t need to get in 10 mile runs yet, but instead, I had planned to run 8 miles. The day dawned cold and wet. Had I not had goals in mind, I would have found an excuse and stayed in my warm cozy bed. But, even though it’s still months away from either of these races, I know that it’s much easier to STAY in shape than it is to GET in shape. So, we got up and out, meeting about 20 other running club and Team Framingham members at 8:00 AM – in the 35 degree rain.

 

Yesterday my husband kindly decided to stick with me for most of the run. We started out faster than my usual pace, but once the hills of Newton came at me I slowed down a bit. We detoured off the route so we could run past the house where I grew up. That was great! As we hit the turn-around point to get to my 8-mile goal, I was still feeling strong, so we kept going all the way to Cleveland Circle. The run back was a little less hilly, but my legs sure were colder and getting a little stiff. I got back to the car and my watch read 9.85 miles. I couldn’t leave it at that, so a run around the parking lot got me to the 10-mile mark. Yay! At first I was a little disappointed in my overall time, but as I was reflecting on the run, I realized that I ran up the famous Heartbreak Hill (it’s actually more than one hill). Who am I kidding? It was cold, it was wet, and it was hilly – but I did it, and I exceeded my goal. Proud moment. 🙂