Running Along the Green Sea!

After the intense summer storm we had last night, it's easy to confuse Lake Michigan with another body of water.  On Sunday, I was able to run along the Michigan side of Lake Michigan and it was beautiful and serene, something out of a picture.  Today was the exact opposite!  The waves were crashing up against the walls and the greenish/brown color of the water definitely made for an enjoyable run, minus the wind coming in from the north.  I really enjoy running in the not-so-ideal weather elements, it allows me to focus and take in a view of the city and lake that I rarely get to see.

Regardless, it was nice to be outside and running again after taking a brief break for some fun in Michigan!

Hopefully I'll be able to get a run in the rain in soon :)

Is that Betty White Running?

I think the one thing I've learned from running this week was to never, EVER go for a 9 mile run following a bachleorette party.  The runs throughout the week were great, I was able to pick up my speed, but with all the lovely weather we've had this past weekend I had to bump my long run from Saturday to Sunday.  I was able to keep a consistent time for the first 8 miles, but I'm pretty sure that Betty White ran faster than me during the last mile.  My running during the last mile could have easily been confused with power walking, but I'm ok with that.

Oh well, on to week 4!

Slowly Getting into a Groove

I started off my second week of training fairly strong.  Got the majority of my runs completed outside with the few days of beautiful weather we had in the city and then the weekend came...  Unfortunately I wasn't able to get in my long run of 9 miles on Saturday, but I've built in a few extras weeks into my training program to accommodate the few busy weeks that I have during the summer to use them as "cushion" runs.  However, I now have the pleasure of running them THIS Saturday, yay....

I've started to use my short runs as a time to build up my speed and see just how fast I can run.  Today I tried that and I was able to run a full 50 seconds faster than I normally run a mile!  I've gotten into a habit of knowing what I can consistently run 13.1 miles in, that I've stuck with the same pace.  While my main goal is to just finish the marathon, I'd like to do it in a decent time.  So hopefully I'll be able to pick up the speed over the next few months.

Thanks again to everyone for their words or encouragement and support.  You guys are the best!

Katelyn

And We're Off!

The week of May 8th marks the beginning of my training for the 2011 Chicago Marathon.  I'll be running on behalf of the Chicago Catholic Charities "Neighbors in Need" program.  I'm extremely excited to be running in it and touched by all the words of encouragement I've received from my family and friends. 

With the help of my good friend Brittany T, I was able to help create this blog to keep all of you updated with my progress of training for the marathon and give you the ability to post any comments or suggestions that you may have for me!  The blog will be updated at least weekly, so you can all see my progress with training.  Since this is my first marathon I'll be following the Hal Higdon training program, however I'm interested in hearing from all of you as to what has and has not worked for them.

I would like to give a special thanks to Chris, Brendan and Angie for their generosity with donating on behalf of my running campaign for the Chicago Catholic Charities.

Also, if you're ever looking for a running partner on Saturday mornings or after work, let me know, I'd love to see you out for a bit on the Lakefront Path!

Thanks for stopping by!

Katelyn