The beginning...

I have always been the kind of person who avoided sports or any kind of exercise at all cost.  I wouldn't say I was a lazy person, but my friends and family would have probably described me that way.  When I was in school even the slightest hint of being forced to run or play a team sport and I would fein illness, injury or simply disappear.  That's why when I announced I was going to train for a 5k obstacle course in the early part of 2011 those closest to me laughed it off.  That's not to say they were unsupportive, because I have some of the best friends and family a girl could want, but they certainly would have never guessed that in year's time I would come so far.

Of course, I never expected to actually love running either.  I just wanted to prove something to myself so I set out with the goal of running 5k in mind.  Pretty much right off I realized I loved everything about running--the way it made me feel, the sense of accomplishment, the healthier and happier me.

My first race I ran by myself, just as I had trained.  The Warrior Dash in Conroe, Texas was so much fun and the first hook into me for racing.  I hadn't built up to being able to run a solid 5k distance yet, but I had a great time and felt amazing when I was able to finish in one piece (though with a slight limp and a slight crimp in my training plans for a few weeks).

MUD!

Warrior Dash Finisher - March 2011

Once I was able to get back to running I returned to my training schedule and before long was running my first solid 5k.  I found a great running buddy to hit the races with and I started another training plan to build up to a 10k distance.

After successfully running my first 10k and feeling great about it I started toying with the idea of training for a large distance, something that would have never even crossed my mind before.  I looked at a few training schedules for a Half Marathon distance and got my running buddy on board.  Some how a link for the Chevron Houston Marathon and Armaco Half Marathon came across my computer screen.  I started to realize that with the amount of time I had before the race I could conceivably train for the Full Marathon distance.  After a little back and forth debate it was decided and I began my training...