I needed this info today...

I sent an SOS email out to my peeps about injury /training / advice... go figure, the jodie-wikipedia asking for advice !?!?!?! It was needed. I got some awesome feedback. Again, it was needed.

I think I can do this stuff, and then, find out, I CAN, if I start off right. And I haven't been doing that.

So... I think the Kona Lisa will be my new best friend for a while. I already know I'm a great 'spect-athlete'. I think I'll try to be content with doing a little at a time. And come next Monday (no, not THIS monday, I already double, triple, quadruple, checked the calendar... it's NEXT monday) I'll do what the Dr (and everyone else) says and take it slow. I'll have patience. Really.... I will.

I've got my goal set for Vegas, and me and my supplements and training are sticking to it...

I read this today from one of my fav running writers - and I like it. I KNOW I like 5ks, and I know I'm thrilled when I finish a Half... so this makes total sense to me. I'm so very very very impressed with the distance my sister can run, and run well.. She likes the 26.2, and she rocks it every time. And the 'sense of community' he talks about .... I've seen that at every distance race.. and I know my sister has it in her town. I like the 5k's and the Halfs... I'm good with that. And his last sentence is what all of this is all about... all the time :)

I ran my first marathon, in Memphis, TN in December of 1992. Well, that's not exactly true. I trained - or overtrained - for my first marathon during the fall of 1992. I didn't read anything about training, didn't have a training plan, just a stubborn determination. I made it to mile 6.

I complete my first marathon nearly a year later in Columbus, OH. I had a training plan, and a training partner. I had a race strategy and a very cool "engineer's" hat. I ran at least one marathon a year EVERY year from 1993 to 2006. That's 14 years. And some of those years I ran as many as 6 marathons. That's not a lot if you're one of the marathon maniacs, but it was a lot for me. The marathon in 2006 was part of the Walt Disney World "Goofy" challenge. As it got late in 2007 I got worried about breaking my streak. Once or twice I started on a marathon training schedule only to get a certain distance and just think "no way". In 2008 I tried a couple of times to complete a half marathon training program. I started out with good intentions, but never got past a 12 mile run.

What I've discovered is what I knew when I started out. I like the shorter distances. I like running shorter distances, training for shorter distances, and racing the shorter distances. I can run more often, run harder and faster - fast for me - and find it easier to fit the training into my day. It works for me.

Why, then, do I feel guilty about REALLY liking the 5K distance? Why is it that I think that training for, and participating in, a 5K is somehow "less than" training for and participating in a half marathon or full marathon? I don't know. But I have some thoughts.

The running "industry" loves the long distances races. They can charge big fees, they can attract big crowds, and they can make a ton of money. I'm not being critical. I've certainly benefitted from the 2nd running boom's desire to run long distances at huge races.

What I miss, though, is the spirit and sense of community that you find in local races. I ran a small 4 mile run last Thanksgiving and had a GREAT time. I didn't have a great "time", but I was able to push myself just a little because I knew the distance was well within my capabilities.

These days I'm running 3 miles a day - or walking 2 miles - nearly every day. I can do that because I'm not worried about long runs. And, to be honest, I'm having more fun than I have in years.

So, it's not that I'm bashing the long distances and giant races. I'll be at all of the Rock 'n' Roll Series events this year. I'm just saying that for me - and maybe others - the joy of running is still the best reason to run, whatever that distance turns out to be.