Hello 2013!

It's been weeks since I last signed on, and it was a much needed break. Not from the blogging, because I seem to like to talk to myself here, but from the structure of the marathon training. Boy, have I been slacking off.

The good news is that my “runner’s knee” and my hamstring pain have vanished.  That’s what happens when you don’t run for three months.  Those were my over-use, over-training injuries leading up to the Chicago Marathon last fall.  Had those injuries come just a month later and I had arrived to the start line injury-free, I would’ve finished the marathon in under 6 hours like I had leniently allowed myself.  Nothing speedy, just a near decent finishing time.  But woe is me.  The injuries hit one month before race day and I felt lucky to have hobbled across the finished line in under 7 hours.  Whoop de doo {sarcasm}.  Don’t get me wrong, my marathon experience was one of the best of my life.  It was a perfect 1^st marathon experience (Thanks to Candi, Mei, Troy and a beautiful downtown Chicago).  I learned so much about me, myself and I, and am ready to march (or run) forward.

All the books and websites say the best way to heal overuse injuries is to not run.  They also say to maintain cardio and muscle tone by cross-training (but let’s not go there yet).  So I took time off after Chicago.  I jog-walked the Dana Point Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning, still feeling tinges of pain, but feeling good about eating a good dinner later that day.   

Time off from running was helping me relax and recharge.  I was starting to forget about all the early running mornings and the long runs I had logged during the hot summer.  In a the matter of only three months all that training was being forgotten in the bustle of the holidays and the coming New Year – not to mention we moved to a different house one month after the marathon.  I felt discombobulated for a while.

Time off from running also causes extreme shrinkage in clothing. Funny how that works out. Remember that bit about staying fit and doing cross-training?  Yeah, me neither. 

So 2013 is a bit like starting all over again.  I have done some short runs this month and they are pain free – at least from the standpoint of my knee and hamstring.  Not so pain-free from an ego, “how come you are not in shape anymore” standpoint.  It’s all good.  No pressure this year but to enjoy my runs.   Which isn’t to say I don’t have races on the calendar or goals in my head.  I do – on both counts.

You can see the list of registered races on the right. Woot.  Looking forward to each of them, for different reasons.  Some I will be more ready for than others, but to me it’s all good.  By the way, it feels so good to be running in cool weather.  Last summer was a beater.

So with my 2013 running goals in mind, here are my words for this year – which I will apply to everything I am going to work on….from running, to family, to crafting, to anything I take on.

So, yes, it's January 11th as I write this and the year is pushing two weeks old, but I feel ok saying Hello to 2013 at this time, because now I am ready to face it.

Happy New Year.