Nike Women's Marathon: PART ONE

Wow, what a scary post.  Never in a million years would I believe that I would so much as whisper the word M-A-R-A-T-H-O-N.  OK, well it's a half marathon.  But let's face it, half of 26 miles is still no simple task.  That's right friends and families, Mariah has triumphed. 

When she signed up for her first marathon in Carlsbad, she tried to hook me in to the torment that is distance running with her to no avail.  Undeterred, she trained and finished HER first half marathon:

Now don't get me wrong, I like to run.  In the same way I like broccoli.  Not a yummy cheese and broccoli casserole or something exciting like that.  I'm talking about when you steam broccoli, add no butter or salt and fill half your plate with the stuff because you know it's good for you.  Similarly, I know running is good for me.  I pretty much get my cardio out of the way like I choke down my broccoli: it's not really that bad and afterward I feel really great about myself. 

The thing is, sports normally come pretty easy for me.  Running has just never felt easy like the other sports, quite the opposite.  I remember going out for every sport as a youngster - baseball, soccer, gymnastics, tennis and LOVING it.  But I still remember the day in fourth grade my friends talked me in to trying out for the cross country team.  I went the first day and about half way through I wanted to fall over and take a nap, told my friends they were out of their minds and vowed to never return again. 

Now at 30, my total distain of running has subsided to a much more tolerable mild distain for running.  I've also noticed that my positivity towards running seems to rise in exact proportion to the falling rate of my adult metabolism.  Nothing gets you feeling healthier, faster than running if you do it safely.  Every women I see who is in great shape inevitably spits out the same story:  "I love to run!  Ohhh, you have to start doing marathons.  They're the BEST, you'll love them!!"  Cough, cough, choke back sarcasm, smile and nod in agreement.  Truth is, I want to be like these women.  But it is major work for me.  Mariah, never one to turn away from challenge, is always there to keep me motivated, as evidence by the contents of a package sent from her back in December: 

  

I've tried to tell Mariah gently that the whole half-marathon thing is definitely a dream goal, but that I just can't imagine any thing, not a-n-y thing that could get me to shuffle 13.1 miles to a finish line.

I couldn't imagine any thing that could convince me to shuffle 13.1 miles to a finish line. 

But Mariah could.

Stay tuned for the next post entitled Nike Women's Marathon: PART TWO.

And don't cheat by googling it!