I cannot believe there are two months left in the year.  It is going by so fast!!

This month I ran 58.81 miles compared to 57.25 last month.  Very slow month.  Need to work on motivation.

I ran two races in October:  Baltimore Running Festival Half Marathon and the Indianapolis Half Marathon. They were back to back on two weekends and kicked my butt.  Despite the hills, they were great and beautiful courses.

Upcoming races in November include.
11/3      Carrera de los Muertos 5K
11/10    Chicago’s Perfect 10K
11/18    Magic City Half Marathon, Birmingham, AL
11/22    Rotary Run 3/14 Pie

I’ve been busy planning the various half marathons I plan to run next year.  It is not an easy task.  I need to check flights (preferably Southwest since Midway Airport is about 5 minute from my house) and hotels.  So far I’ve purchased a ticket for the races in Washington, DC and Nashville.

I was planning to have surgery in November but I’ve postponed it.  Because of the surgery I was going to stop running after the race in Birmingham.  Now that it is postponed, no need to stop.  Now to look for other races in December, January, and February.  Any suggestions?

Run Happy!!

This month I ran 84 miles compared to 107.22 last month.  Yes, I did slack on a few runs.  Two weeks of taper and I only ran twice.  I hope that does not affect my performance on Sunday.  I read that the course is flat.  Hmm, the Chicago course is flat.  We’ll see about this one.

No races this month.  My first one is next month and then nonstop races till at least October.  I plan to run in every race I can afford.  I would like to run in at least 20 races and complete 12 half marathons.  Can I pull this off?

I have not completed one marathon but am already planning another one.  Yep, I plan to run the Marine Corps Marathon on October 28th.  Registration starts on Wednesday, March 7th.

I will retire my Brooks PureCadence after the marathon.  Next, I will be running in the Brooks Green Silence.  I read a review by Runblogger and on the Brooks site.  Looks like a decent shoe but not sure about doing long runs in them.

I am planning to go to Las Vegas next month.  Yes, I need a vacation before my Spring Break.  I have friends that are going for a meeting so I plan to stay with them.  The plan ticket is EXPENSIVE….over $400.  I want to go!!  I want to play blackjack in a casino and go to the Grand Canyon.  Sigh.  But am I willing to spend $400 on the ticket?  Well, considering that I won’t have to pay for a hotel I guess it is not a bad deal huh?

Run Happy!!

This month I ran 107.22 miles.  Yay!!!  Finally a month over 100 miles.  That is a record for me.  It would have been more but ( excuses, excuses) I only ran 12 on Sunday when I was supposed to do 20 and today I was supposed to do 5 but stayed late at school and by then i was too tired to go to the gym.

No races this month.  Too cold.  Still in training for the Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans Marathon on March 4.  So excited but scared too.  I think this is a feeling i will have with every marathon.

I am looking forward to warmer weather so that I can run AND race outside.  I know, I know.  I have might have mentioned that I would rather run in cold weather than in snow but I am still a “chicken” when it comes to running in cold weather.  I cannot handle it.

So far we’ve been really lucky with the weather in Chicago. I hope I did not jinxed it.  I remember last year we had that terrible snowstorm and caused me to miss 3 days of school.  Yes I was happy to be home but I remember being bored and then not happy when I had to make them up at the end of June.  I am hoping this year we do not miss any school days because I am planning to participate in the Ragnar Relay, June 8-9.

I continue to run in my Brooks PureCadence.  I have not experience major pain except in the outer part of my feet.  I don’t know if it’s the shoes, my feet, or increased in mileage.  The pain does go away when I stretch my feet.  Next on my list of shoes to run in are the Brooks Green Silence.  Yay!!!

I bought two running skirts from Zappos:  Brooks PR Mesh Skort II and Skirt Sports Gym Ultra.  I just briefly tried them on but will write about them once I run in them.

Run Happy!!

This month I ran 82.61miles.  No races this month.  I am too much of a chicken to run in the cold.  Oh well, that will change once I get back to Chicago to continue my training for the Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans Marathon.  Just a little over 2 months to go.  So far I have been training on the treadmill but feel like I should get out there.

Total miles ran this year is 736.54.  Last year I had set a goal of running 1,000 miles by today.  Yeah, that did not happen.  I’d like to blame it on the slow months of February (20 miles) and July (17 miles).  I remember in February I got hurt and could not run hence the 20 miles.  This summer I went on a 3 week vacation to Mexico, Ecuador, and Peru which left no time for running (17 miles) but A LOT of time for walking.

Besides the marathon I have signed up for the following races:
CARA Lakefront 10 Miler, 4/28
Fleet Feet Sports Soldier Field 10 Miles, 5/26

I’ve done both races in the past and LOVE them!!! I will also sign up for the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K.  Another great race!  However, registration doesn’t start till tomorrow.  🙂

Thanks to Katie at Live Half Full, I found out about the Chi Town Half Marathon & 10K on April 1.  Looks interesting.  I will wait a few months (early registration ends March 4) before I make a definite decision on whether I do it or not.

This year I ran a total of 15 races.
Marathon-1
Half Marathon-3
10 Miles-3
10K-2
8K-1
3.14-1
5K-4

My goal for next year is to run at least 20 races.  That is only 5 more than this year.  For sure I can do it.

What is the most races you’ve done in a year?

Happy New Year and Run Happy!!!