Holiday Training Sucks

This will be one of those brutally honest posts.

It gets dark early

The sun comes up late

It's cold

There are dozens of holiday parties to go to

People like making cookies

I like eating cookies

I hate running during the holidays, and this is the first year I'm even attempting to stick to a regular schedule.  It's not perfect, but I'm trying.  This week between Christmas and New Years is especially hard - like most, I'm still "recovering" from Christmas festivities and gearing up for New Years festivities.

There are no winners this week...only "not as bad" losers.

Now...would you mind handing me that plate of cookies?

Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad, Boston?

Boston is one of the most revered races in running history.  When a runner says, "Boston" you know they're not  talking about the stunning city that's rich with famous American history and stunning architecture; no, they're talking about the race.

As a runner myself, having the opportunity to run Boston (even on a charity bib) makes me feel like I will be "blessed" as one of the goddesses of running.  I feel like I'm embarking on what will be a grueling journey of training that will culminate in a spectacular race across the great cities of eastern Massachusetts and end on the stunning finish line.  I will be pushing myself harder than ever...or will I?

I took a few minutes to see what I was getting myself into - I was expecting the most grueling race of my life, but after looking at the elevation profile, I might start laughing...Let me explain why before you think I'm ripping on the world's most revered race.

For the past three years, I have participated in the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco.  The reason I do Nike is for the gorgeous firefighters in tuxedos waiting for you at the finish line with beautiful Tiffany blue boxes on a silver platter (I may be married, but I'm never above a cute man giving me a blue box!).  A very cool race, but not as renown as Boston.  This is the elevation profile of what has become my annual sufferfest to get a Tiffany's necklace:

Now let's compare this to the most well-respected race in the history of mankind:

Do you see why I might be putting myself into what could end up being a false sense of security?  Even accounting for the difference in scale, this "Heartbreak Hill" is an 88 foot climb in about a half a mile between Miles 20 and 21.  There's a very similar climb in a very similar spot in the Nike race.  It's an elevation gain of only 69 feet between Miles 20 and 21, but do you see the THREE GIANT CLIMBS before that?

Am I crazy to think that Boston won't be as hard as Nike?  If you have any comments or experience on the two races, I'd love to to hear your thoughts...because right now, I'm feeling a little overly confident in my ability to post a massive PR at Boston.

Boston? Yes please!

So... it's official.  I (Kristiana) have been selected to run for the American Red Cross in Boston during next year's Boston Marathon...You heard that right, Boston Marathon.  I've been "running" (as in, more than 2 miles at a time) since 2007, and this is certainly a Bucket List item that I am really excited about!

Mind you, I didn't exactly "qualify" for Boston through traditional channels (i.e. run really fast for a long time), but the Boston Athletic Association was kind enough to create a charity program that allowed people - like yours truly - to participate with less than perfect skills.  Maybe one day I'll be able to legitimately qualify; but in the meantime, I'll take a charity bib any day of the week!

This week, we received out first week's training schedule....which led to two simultaneous emotions.  The first emotion was "OMG this is really happening!!!!" and the second emotion was, "Crap, I really signed up to do Boston, didn't I?"  The reason for the second emotion stemmed from the beer I had in my hand.  I know my "recovery time" from the Nike Women's Marathon was officially over.

I plan to blog a lot during the next few months, so I hope you'll follow along...it should be interesting.