Strength...

Having the strength physically and MENTALLY to train for a half marathon...Something I NEVER thought I would do.



For the past few years in November, my family would make a six hour drive (sometimes a quick flight) to Philadelphia to watch my father run the half marathon.  It's become quite the tradition, and each year someone in my family is inspired to run along, too.  My sister joined in one year, then my aunt, and now this year...my Uncle and I. 

Each year that I would go, I would feel envy towards the runners and my father (and whoever else joined him that year). I would tell myself..."next year, I'll run"...but it would never happen.  I'm not quite sure what it was that I was afraid of...I mean, I used to run all of the time and loved it! But, since then, I had gained a significant amount of weight, had a child, gained more weight, and the idea of running that far was hard to wrap my head around.

By the time I had signed up as a Beachbody coach, and started the 21 Day Fix and Shakeology, I had also picked up running again.  I would run a few miles here and there, sign up for a few 5Ks, and then eventually became more ambitious and signed up for a couple of 10Ks. 

One day, I received an email - "Sign up for the Philadelphia Half Marathon, and get the Early Bird rate! Nearly 50% off!" 

Without even thinking about it, I signed up, called my dad, recruited my uncle and sister, and before I knew it I was officially registered to run my first half marathon. When I first signed up, I was SO excited. It was euphoric, even. But then, reality hit...I just signed up to run a half marathon...

I felt overwhelmed about what I had just done, but I had to keep my head on straight.  I had remember that excited feeling I had upon signing up, and go with it. I had to remember WHY I signed up in the first place - for that personal challenge.

Here are some tips on how I was able to keep a positive attitude throughout my training, and how I kept my mind in that initial state of excitement throughout the entire process:

1. Baby Steps

Building up to 13 miles doesn't just happen in a day, and if it did, we wouldn't sign up to run a half marathon in the first place...especially if we signed up for that personal challenge! So, take baby steps in your approach to getting to your goal distance...one day, one hour, one step at a time. Focus on TODAY, and not too far down the road.  Why? Say you get out there and have a bad run (which is going to happen)...that bad run will make you feel discouraged, and could hurt your mindset. But, if you brush off that bad run, you can pick up the next run with a better mindset.

2. Break your run up mentally into bite sized pieces

I use this mentality a lot on my long runs, because that high number can feel really scary - I need to run HOW MANY miles today??? I didn't really start doing this until I hit 9 or more miles, but once I hit 10, 11, 12 miles, the thought of running that far became scary for me until I just got out there and did it.

This idea of breaking your run up into parts is an idea I got from a friend.  If a 10 mile run seems overwhelming, think of it as running two 5 mile runs. It will feel more manageable for you.

3. Take the work "quit", and remove it from your vocabulary!

Easier said than done, I know, but if you remove that terrible word from your mind altogether, you're less likely to actually quit!  Training for a race, for me, is so much more than just that physical challenge...it's mental.  Set the expectation from the very beginning that quitting is NOT an option for you. Make sure your family and friends know that, too. They can (and will) hold you to it!

4. If others can do it...so can YOU!

Keep this perspective on your mind as you're training.  Remember that there are thousands of others, just like you, and maybe some with more limitations than you, who have trained for, and completed a half marathon. If they can do it, why not you?

If you have any questions about my training regimen, please contact me. I'd love to share!