marathons – Live, Laugh and Laces

November 28, 2015November 28, 2015

Running Adventures with Friends

Depending on where you live, this past week may have brought some snow! Not everyone is an all season runner, but for myself it’s no longer up for debate. My goals keep getting bigger and therefore my running season continues to expand.

My training in 2015 started pretty much in January, leading up to some early spring races, one of which was Around the Bay. It only continued to grow from there! Before I knew it I was booked with races in May, June, August, September, October and into the first weekend of November. Not all marathons, but regardless I seemed to be racing most weekends. I have one race left to go on New Years Eve.

The race I think I was most looking forward to this Fall was the Ottawa MEC Race. I wasn’t originally going to run it because it was 2 weeks after running the Toronto Marathon. After having a conversation with Chris Chapman, the race director, I decided I wanted to see how I’d do in what is quickly becoming known as one of Canada’s toughest races. Besides how many races offer poutine at the end! I had seriously considered running the marathon, however, after running Toronto I had a minor lower leg issue surfacing and did not want to risk an injury.

The morning of the race was beautiful. I woke up excited and nervous. I had gone up to Gatineau Park a few times for training but really did not know what to expect of the hills for race day. I happened to run into a friend of mine before the race started. She was already running with a friend of hers but invited me to join them if I wanted. So I did, at least I figured starting out it would be nice to be accompanied by others.

The race start line is approximately a km from the finish line. So it required a light jog or walk down the approximately 1km hill (the race is set up to require a km climb at the finish, brutal)!

By the time we made it to the start line we had about 30sec. to get organized and then we were off! I believe the first 4 km’s or so were relatively flat with minimal climbs. Then the hills began!

The views throughout the race were spectacular, but this one was worth stopping for.

At the top of the longest stretch of an incline someone yelled out in victory and I think those of us within earshot celebrated with them! The best part was the 4-6km decline towards the end of the race, followed up of course by the last km climb to the finish line.

Allyson, Kristina and myself managed to keep each other in our sights for most of the race. During some of the more difficult climbs Allyson came up with a 10sec. run/10 sec. walk chant to get it done! We used this near the finish line as well. You can do anything for 10sec., right?!

This was the first time I met Kristina. What an experience to share. We ended up with a very respectable time considering we were only wanting to complete it! I loved the company and would seriously consider doing the marathon in the future.

The week after this race I ran the Cookie Run. I decided early on in 2015 that I was going to participate in more local runs. This was the 2nd last race of the year for me. The weather was perfect, the course was fantastic with a 5K loop, that we did twice.

What I love about the running community is the friendships you can make. Your life can be completely different from one another and yet running can bring you together.

That’s how I met Agnes. We are huge supporters of I2P and through mutual online friends we connected. There was an event where Ray Zahab (founder of Impossible2Possible and adventure runner) and Christopher McDougall (author of Born to Run and Natural Born Heroes) were speaking in order to raise support and awareness for I2P. Agnes was coming up to Ottawa for the event so she figured she might as well run the Cookie Run in the morning. 🙂

We made arrangements for coffee the day before to meet in person for the first time and then decided to run together the next morning. It was a blast!! We ran very well and talked throughout most of the race. So fun!

I’m currently enjoying my down time from formal training. I am continuing to get out for runs and doing back to back longer runs in the trails on the weekends, no pace in mind just a length of time on my feet.

2016 goals are now set and I’m working on the details. I cannot wait to announce my BIG race goals! This year will be more about training and much less racing!

How about you? Do you have your 2016 goals set yet?

December 13, 2014

Setbacks or Injuries – Do They Hold You Back?

When I’m training for something, I’m all in! I am dedicated and focused and try my best to follow a plan. My husband is always amazed at how committed and disciplined I can be. That’s not to say it’s easy, however I try not to think too much and just do what is scheduled! 🙂

So when I’m injured, or taking things down a notch to allow for recovery, it’s hard for me. It’s hard not to be “on” all the time. I like structure and being focused. Not being able to run drives me crazy! I tend to fall back on nutrition, tweaking my “fuel” more and finding new ways to get good nutrition in. I get on Pinterest more during this time!! (Are we following each other?)

Just before the marathon at the end of October I started getting a pain in my right ankle/arch area. It became quite evident on marathon day that there was an issue there. I took the appropriate time for recovery before getting back into my running but the arch pain has lingered on.

I have a fantastic team around me and trust them completely! They have been working on dealing with the soft tissue damage and I’ve scaled back the running to give time to heal while we figure things out. In fact, I haven’t ran at all in the past 7 days! Seriously, 7 days and it’s driving me crazy! It’s such a minor issue, however being in the foot it is not one that I can ignore. I am usually a very optimistic person, however, mentally this is a bit of a battle for me. Having suffered from stress fractures in the past, this is now a new fear of mine, and it can kill confidence!

With such huge goals for 2015 I cannot start my year with this nagging issue going on. I must get to the bottom of it. We are 99% sure it is soft-tissue related and can be dealt with, but it’s funny how that 1% can over shadow things.

Today I am getting out for a run. I will pay close attention to how I’m feeling and report back to my team. I’m also having a scan that should confirm 100% if it is only the soft-tissue affected.

Throughout my years of running I have been the one to make decisions about what, when and how I do things. Choosing to trust others to make the decisions for me when it comes to my training schedule is hard but it is the decision I made when I enlisted their help!

I’m not sitting around doing nothing though 🙂 I’ve started Basic Training with the TRX to build some core strength, I’m doing PiYo 2-3x/week, and I’m focusing on my diet with an emphasis on avoiding inflammatory foods and more protein.

More than anything I need to get my head in the game, build my confidence again so I can go into January confident and strong. Training is as much mental as it is physical. So I am working hard to trust myself, to trust my body and believe that I will have a very successful running year in 2015!

Have you ever had to overcome fear, disappointment or a lack of confidence related to overcoming past injuries or setbacks? Would love to hear your experience.

December 5, 2014December 5, 2014

A Quick Look Back – Exciting Things For 2015

This time of the year excites me! I love looking back and evaluating how the year went. Often, the year didn’t go quite the way I planned. Through every experience, highs and lows, personal bests and setbacks or injuries, there is always an opportunity to learn and discover more about myself and, if I’m lucky, about others. This year was no different and through my injury I was connected to my now running coach and a ton of other great people.

2014 Year in Review:

Around The Bay and Ottawa Marathon were misses due to injury. My planned marathon for Calgary was downgraded to the 5K just so I could experience the race 🙂 My daughter and I volunteered and loved it, as usual, and I dressed up for the first time ever in a race to celebrate running through the decades. I started training for the Toronto Marathon as soon as my boot came off, and had a PB on race day. I ran my very first trail run, a 23K with the I2P run in Gatineau, QC, dressed up for the Ghost Run and ran one of my favourites, in the pouring rain, the Army Run!

My husband and daughter participated in their very first races this year (Strides for Ethan and Ottawa Foam Fest), it was amazing to do these with them. A few other smaller races and to top the year off I hired a running coach. Lots of firsts this year!

Setting Goals for 2015

This is also a time that I am looking ahead. I’m planning new race goals, distances, training schedules, and making arrangements for out of town events. Some events are still under wraps but staying true to myself, I am setting goals that take me beyond my comfort zone.

One of my goal races this year is The Ottawa Race Weekend Marathon. I originally planned on running my first marathon in Ottawa (and second) but due to injuries was side-lined from accomplishing this. I ended up running my first and second out of town. I am determined that 2015 is my year to run the Marathon in the city I call home.

I am so thrilled to have been invited to join The Ottawa Race Weekend’s Team Awesome. This is such an incredible honour for me. To share my love for running, encourage others to set race goals and connect with other runners throughout our journey to race day is something I’m already so passionate about – being able to do all of this as part of Team Awesome is a forever memory in the making!!

You can follow the entire Team Awesome on a variety of social media sites. We will be using #TORW2015 to connect and chat with all of you. We all have different strengths, personalities, interests and experiences so you’ll likely relate to more than one of us. Meet Team Awesome

If you’ve ran the Ottawa Race Weekend before then you know it’s a fantastic race and an incredible way to see the city. If you have not experienced this race for yourself, it’s a must and you should seriously register. Register Here

I also love volunteering for race kit pick up every year for Ottawa Race Weekend, as this is something my daughter and I do for numerous races in Ottawa. We even convinced my son to come with us for one event. This is such a great way for your kids to be inspired by others, share something with you that you love to do, and in their words, get cool free stuff! You’ll see me at Race Pick Up again this year – say hi if you see me!

November 11, 2014

Done and Done – No. 2 Completed

The Toronto Marathon did not disappoint!! What an incredible experience. Compared to last year’s adventure (read about it here), this race was everything I had hoped for. My goals for 2014 did not include having 2 stress fractures (same time, same foot), wearing a boot for 8 weeks, no running for 12 weeks and therefore not sure if running a second marathon was going to be possible.

If I was to run another one, I hoped to run again in Toronto to see if, with training and the right gear, I could do better. When I was invited to join the STWM Digital Champions I jumped in and fully committed to doing my best. This incredible opportunity gave me the extra motivation I needed to train hard and believe for a good race. My boot came off mid-May (official training started mid June). I did not have a solid base because of the injury and tried to ease back into running. My injury caused me to miss Around The Bay, Ottawa Race Weekend and Calgary Marathon. The boot came off in time to run Calgary, but with no training for the full, I ran the 5K just to experience it. I even dressed up in an 80’s running costume, something I never do as it’s way out of my comfort zone. But I thought, so what?! Participate, have fun and let loose. 🙂 What a beautiful way to see the city! I’m hoping to still experience the Calgary Marathon in 2015 – but we’ll see.

So after an adventure filled summer of training runs and races, the day finally arrived for the marathon but so did feelings of doubt and anxiety. I fell on a trail run just 2 weeks before the marathon which caused a slight injury in my groin. I couldn’t run for a solid week because of the pain it caused. I got out for a shake out run a few days before and felt okay but not solid.

My goals the morning of the race were to enjoy it, take more in, and be more aware of the people and my surroundings. My time goal obviously was to beat last year’s time. I didn’t know if I could get under 4hr. 45min., as I didn’t feel I was trained up enough. My, “I’m going to cry, can’t believe I did it goal,” was under 4:30 but I honestly had no expectations of that going in. The mental battle of self-doubt was strong and I wasn’t even sure I could complete the second half. I even gave myself permission that if I was in pain at 19K, near the split, I’d make the decision to end the race early and come in for the half-marathon instead.

I had hoped to meet up with the other DCs before the race, but got lost and ended up missing them. I coincidently bumped in to a few of them near the start corals, said a quick hello, grabbed a quick photo and then we were off to line up.

StartCorals — Christine, myself and Susan

Once in the corals with over 25,000+ other people Susan from my running club – who I had no plans to meet up with – happened to find me! This, I believe, was no coincidence! We ended up running the first half together, pacing really well! I ran my first ever continuous 1/2 marathon and pb’d it. I had loosely planned on walking at water stations but because I really wasn’t sure how much pain I’d be in due to the injury I was open to do 10/1s or whatever I had to do to get it done. I hadn’t expected to feel so good. My biggest concerns during the first half was if I was overdoing it, was my pace too fast, should I pull back? What if I tank for the 2nd half? BUT Susan and I talked most of the time and I didn’t feel like I was pushing too hard. Even when I suggested we pull back a bit, within moments we were back running the same pace, feeling good.

For the 2nd half I decided maybe I should switch to 10/1s to be safe–still concerned that maybe I’d tank after the 32K mark, knowing what was ahead still. I had seen Laura (also from my running club) earlier and she was focused, had a plan and was doing her 10/1s. I saw her ahead of me and kept her in my sight. When she walked, I walked, when she ran, I ran. I did this for awhile (I hadn’t set up my app for 10/1’s so this was just logical to me).

At around the 30K mark I was feeling a lot of pain in my right foot. My foot pronates inward and I had been transitioning into newer shoes trying to solve my issues. Add the groin injury on the same side and I think I was overcompensating a bit. I had to push through quite a bit of pain the last 3-4K. BUT I still felt overall pretty good. I was smiling at the camera whenever I saw it, I was enjoying the cheering stations and the people along the route and I even took time to pull alongside fellow DC – JP, aka Batman, to introduce myself in person as we had only been connecting online up to this point. JP is doing amazing things to raise awareness and support for Sick Kids Toronto (you can see more here: Batman Runs For Sick Kids Toronto).

There was a moment when a 4:30 was in my reach, but at around 39K I realized I was going to miss that so I allowed myself to ease up a bit as my foot was killing me. BUT, not too much as I could still come under 4:35. As we rounded the corner entering the final 500m run to the finish line I was hurting a lot! I was considering walking it in when I saw two guys ahead of me, and something in me decided I was not coming in behind them. So I pushed a little bit harder picking up speed for the final 300m passing them both and coming in strong!

When I kicked it up and passed them, the announcer called my name and Christine (pictured above) who had ran the half marathon started yelling my name from up above me somehow….and then it was over. It was amazing and I knew immediately I would do this race again!

October 9, 2014October 9, 2014

Acknowledging the Wins!

Do you set goals? Are you always looking ahead at what is coming up or do you take time to reflect on where you have come from?

How often do we take the time to just enjoy the moment or take in the day of a particular event or race.

I always have another goal or race coming up. It’s how I get up the next day and keep going. There is not a finish in sight for me but just moments and events to check off one at a time.

Having hired a running coach I am no longer “in control” of my running schedule and have submitted myself entirely to his plans and schedule for me. Part of my fall race plans included the Army Run. My coach suggested I run it hard. Now this can be up for debate with people as I’m training for a fall marathon (just 4 weeks away from the Army Half). Some choose to run it as such, a training run, slow and steady and others will race it. The difference when it falls into your training and is not your goal race is that you do not taper for it, you just run it. Tapering allows your body to recover before the race, and of course you’d take time to recover after as well.

After being told to race it, I had a time goal in mind. To beat last years time. I was short 18 sec. to accomplishing this and a tad disappointed when I realized how close I came. When sending in my weekly report to my coach, I reflected on my week in review. I quickly remembered that it was only 4 short months ago that I was removing a cast that I had on for 3 months! I had come back from a serious stress fracture (including a secondary minor one). I built my running back up quickly and most importantly I remained injury free!

So in fact, my race really was a victory for me. I had been training differently, focusing on building strength and using different muscles for only 3 short weeks. I went into the race after a hard training week, including a long run the day before, and I experienced some special challenges the morning of the race, and yet I still came in ONLY 18sec. short of my time last year.

My disappointment very quickly turned around and I was proud of how I ran. Proud that I have worked hard at correcting my running technique to run more efficiently and injury free and the Army run wasn’t my goal race. 🙂

Next up is my second marathon in Toronto. I hope to beat last year’s time, but again I have to celebrate the fact that after an injury I am going to be back running a full marathon and therefore need to be proud of that accomplishment regardless of my time. Getting a “personal best” is the bonus I hope to experience, however the real win has been the journey of getting to the race. The countless hours and kilometres that I’ve invested to achieve this goal.

I’ve had an exceptional training season, new friends, new connections, being part of special groups including the opportunity to be a Digital Champion for my goal marathon and being given the incredible opportunity to test out new running gear and become an ambassador for some of the gear I’ve tested out and loved.

So my question to you: Have you taken a moment to celebrate where you are today? The personal development or steps that you’ve taken to achieve a goal you have. Again, it doesn’t have to be running related. Are you still moving in the direction of the goals you’ve set for yourself? Are you better today than you were say, even one month ago? Remember why you are doing what you are doing and celebrate what you have already accomplished.

Keep going. 🙂

September 15, 2014September 15, 2014

The Running Continues With Some Help

Adapting to change was evident in this past weeks training. Although I felt good with my cardio my legs were tired. It was all I could do to complete an “easy” 5K on Wednesday! My mind kept trying to convince my legs to go faster, my legs were just not capable, but I pushed and got it done in probably the worst 5K time ever.

It’s funny when you switch up what you’re doing how quickly your body reacts to the change. I combined two training runs into one on Friday which started off slow but ended up feeling fantastic and strong. By Sundays run I felt like I was back, feeling strong and marathon ready! Sunday was a 29K run and I was back running with my running group for a change, it was awesome! Weather was a cool 3 degrees and didn’t rise much more than 9 I think. This is my kind of weather!

I have been using Pro Compression Socks for my recovery after my long runs and love how amazing they feel! On Friday (15K) I decided to try them running for the first time and could not believe how much support I felt with them. I believe that is why my run started off with tired legs but within the first 4K or so I literally had a bounce to my step, I felt strong and could have easily ran further.

My routine after a long run is to put compression socks on for recovery immediately after my shower, as it helps with muscle soreness and blood flow (circulation).

The pro compression socks are so light weight and comfortable I will now be using them for most of my runs for additional support and to help circulation during my long runs. They have the added bonus of keeping me warmer as we move into fall training. Not to mention they have the most amazing fun colours to choose from.

So here are the reasons I think you should try them:

PRO Compression helps increase blood flow which relieves discomfort and assists in recovery.
Super comfortable to be worn during and/or after your runs. Try them and see for yourself just how comfortable they are!
FUN cool colours to choose from.
Variety of styles to choose from (my favourite is the marathon sock).
Special discount code to get 40% off – Use CODE BLG14 at checkout Pro Compression Website

Would you like a chance to win a pair of Pro Compression Socks?

Simply share with me what you do to stay active and your name will be entered to win. You can comment below, facebook me or send me a tweet 🙂 (deadline is Sunday, Sept. 21st)

You might also want to sign up for the Sock Of The Month Email List for special deals and new product announcements (scroll to bottom of homepage).

You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter to stay informed.

I now realize that I want a few more pairs, as colour choices are just too fun not to have a few, plus I can’t keep up with the wash. 😉

Don’t forget to message me and get your name in for the draw! Good Luck!

September 7, 2014September 8, 2014

For The Love Of Running

As a Digital Champion for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon I’ve had the amazing privilege of connecting with so many wonderful people online. Many training for their first marathons but a number of ultramarathoners as well. Interacting with so many runners motivates and inspires me daily!

August was a busier than usual month for me in regards to races and boy did I have fun! It’s hard to pick my favourite one however the Ottawa Foam Fest focused on FUNCORE. This is a quick video of what I experienced with my husband and daughter running their first official races Ottawa Foam Fest Video.

23K Trail Run - Halfway and still smiling! — 23K Trail Run – Halfway and still smiling!

Equally as awesome was my first ever trail run. I absolutely love Ray Zahab’s passion and vision for Impossible2Possible. So when I found out there was an organized trail run with distances ranging from 10K – 100K I wanted to be a part of it. All proceeds went to support the youth ambassadors with I2P. With a little encouragement I signed up for the 23K. Thank goodness two friends decided to run as well, as it would have been a completely different race experience without them! I think I’m pretty much hooked and am now including more trail running in my training.

My training has been going very well, I’m actually enjoying my progress and am having more fun! Long runs are getting long, like really long – today I will be running 32K. I still feel really good and cannot believe we are 6 weeks out from my goal marathon for the fall.

Oh and I have new shoes! I’ve finally made the transition (okay, making the transition slowly) to a lower profile shoe to encourage a more natural running form. So far so good, I still have happy feet!

Most recently (but certainly in my thoughts for 6 months or more) I’ve decided to get a running coach. I realize that there are so many amazing athletes who have expertise beyond my own experience in running. Running is not just recreational for me. I do run for fun, for therapy, and for the challenge and overall feel-good feeling I get by getting outside and running. However, I want to be challenged more and accomplish more than I think I can accomplish. I want to achieve some really awesome running goals and for that I will need someone who is more knowledgeable than me to help me achieve the goals I have.

I’ve decided to go all in (well, because that’s what I do! LOL) My training schedule has changed and I’m trusting in the plan and of course my coach. Week 1 of my new training schedule is now in the books and I accomplished everything I was told to do. Nothing more and nothing less. Okay, maybe a wee tiny bit more BUT I’m learning to do a little less for now 🙂 AND I’m happy to be dragging a few running friends along for the ride, making memories, having fun and simply getting out and running!

Up next for me is the Army Run. Not sure if I’ll be racing it or using it as a training run at this point but I know that it’ll be amazing and I’m looking forward to it.

How is your training going? What was your summer highlights? Would love for you to share.

August 9, 2014

Travelling for Training

Again, life has been busier and I’ve missed more runs with my running group than I had hoped for. Still getting my runs in but more and more on my own. I started hills and felt like a pro while doing them. 🙂

Being a part of the amazing Digital Champion Team (DC’s) for the Toronto Waterfront Marathon means that there are a variety of events happening in Toronto. There are a handful of us DC’s who do not live in Toronto therefore we must travel if we want to participate in these events. The event I chose to travel for was the Beaches Jazz Run 20K Training Run.

I managed to get 3 others to join me and our travel plans were set! We’d leave on the Saturday morning, drive to Toronto, relax Saturday night and be up early for a 7:45am meet and greet with other DC’s before the run began.

Travelling with others that you do not know well can be risky, but when you have health and fitness as a common denominator there is always lots to chat about! Turned out to be a great group to travel with! We happened upon an amazing restaurant for dinner, relaxed and managed to get to bed at a reasonable time. We had three alarms set and were all awake for 5:20am, because we needed time for coffee and of course proper fuelling for our run. Everything went smoothly and we were off to the Beaches.

I enjoyed meeting other DC’s who I’m getting to know through our connections online. It’s so nice to meet in person the people that you are cheering for and believing with to accomplish the goals they have set for themselves. Also, knowing that others were not there as they have had to put their plans on hold. Knowing all to well, how very difficult it is to be “forced” to post-pone your dream because of life’s circumstances or injury. When you are passionately driven to go after your dreams, it’s hard to have to sit back or change and adjust your goals so that you remain healthy. It’s making sure you have balance and that the timetable will work with what is going on in your life. I admire and respect these people for picking the hard choice and doing what is best for them!

It turned out to be a HOT day! The humidity was ridiculous and there did not seem to be much of a breeze, even though we ran along the water for a time. There were pacers for the training run but as far as I could tell only for continuous runners. I choose to do 10/1’s for my long training runs. So I lined up near the back, also noticing the slowest pacer was for a 4hr. 10min. marathon. Realizing that I’d be slower than that, my position in the back seemed to be appropriate.

I had the awesome privilege of travelling with two new friends who were both running their first official 10K’s. They were there to see me off (10K race started 45min. after the 20K). They took pictures and cheered me on when I headed out. I kept up with the 4:10 pacer for the first 2-3K and then gave myself permission to pull back and commence my run/walk plan. This was clearly going to be my own run.

I was not alone at the back but we were not many! This surprised me as I really believe I’m an “average” runner, so where were the other average runners?! It was a fantastic route, having met a number of people earlier on, it was so nice to pass each other on the out and backs and give high fives or simply yell “you’ve got this!” I think the hardest part of the run for me was when we turned off to do a 5K out and back towards Tommy Thompson Park! The air felt dead with little or no breeze and the sun just beat down on us!

Because this was a training run and not a race we were sharing the path and road with other runners and bikers. There were less people in front of me and I unknowingly followed a random runner across Lakeshore Blvd! This seemed very odd to me and didn’t feel right. There was a lot of construction and I realized seeing the Loblaws parking lot that I had made a wrong turn! There was a volunteer at Lakeshore and Leslie St. directing runners to turn down Lakeshore–not across it–BUT with my luck they must have momentarily stepped away and I just followed the runner ahead of me!

No big deal, right? That’s not what I thought when I added almost 0.5km to my run. Once back across Lakeshore I was on my way again to get this thing done! Heading back towards the beaches, I welcomed what little shade there was along the route. It was a lot busier now with people enjoying a family day and watching all us crazy runners actually running on an exceptionally humid day!

The end was in sight, once hitting the boardwalk my main goal was to not fall! Legs were tired, heck I was tired, so watching my footing was my priority. Oh, and hitting my Garmin when I crossed!

Met up with others, chatted about the experience, celebrated with everyone and then signed up for a quick massage!

My travelling friends and I quickly freshened up, found a great spot for an amazing brunch and we were back on the road again to make our 5hr. trip back home.

During the trip home our two friends who ran their first official 10K’s had decided that they would go for it and signed up for their first half marathons!!

All in all, it was a fun 34hr road trip!

July 19, 2014October 17, 2015

The Forgotten Marathon Bag – Yes, It Really Happened!

When I chose to sign up for my very first marathon I had no idea the challenges that our family were about to face. I could have chosen to wait and run another time but I had already made the mental commitment to run, I had already psyched myself into doing all that was required to run a marathon. Running during that time became very therapeutic for me, almost necessary. It became a place for me to process my thoughts and feelings, by talking it out with a new running friend, or being lost in my own thoughts and feelings on a long run. I believe training for the marathon saved me in many ways.

So what happened when I discovered every runners worst nightmare and forgot all my gear in another city the eve of my run?

Read about it here on the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon where they posted my experience in their blog. Honey, I Forgot My Marathon Bag!

Have you ever experienced something like this?

July 14, 2014

With Or Without Others

The past two weeks are somewhat of a blur! I have had to run many of my training runs on my own because of my schedule. It’s been a great two weeks, my runs have been amazing and I’m feeling really good. It’s almost like I’m in a stage of newness again, like rediscovering running for the joy of solitude.

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE running with a group. However, I’ve come to realize that maybe I’ve become a tad dependent on the group. Having to be somewhere at a specific time helps me get out for sure. I’ve had some unexpected things come up forcing me to get out more on my own which made me realize I’ve missed the long runs on my own. I’ve missed the strength I feel when I’m pushing myself at a faster pace OR pulling back forcing myself to slow down for the slow/long run. I’ve forgotten the satisfaction that comes from being in control of the course and the pace, the feeling of being lost in my thoughts and feeling renewed in my heart, thankful and grateful for my family and life.

I have always been a solo runner and I’ve trained for most of my races on my own. I never considered being part of a running group prior to training for my first marathon. When the kilometres started to really climb, I realized the benefits of group running.

I thrived in the group and loved getting to know other runners and feeling inspired and empowered by many of them while out on runs. Running in a group also allowed me to run in areas I wouldn’t run much alone, allowed me to just run without thinking about pace or direction and it certainly kept me company on those 3-4hr training runs. It was the perfect timing for me to connect with the Running Room and train with the marathon group.

This training period feels different though. I know I will get out with the group when I can, and it’ll be just as amazing when I do, however, some of my goals have me being away or training for different events, requiring me to do more training on my own. I think it’s good though, it’s kind of the best of both worlds.

What about you? Are you a loner? Do you like to run on your own or do you need to belong to a running group? Have you ever been a part of a group? This certainly can apply to anyone going to the gym, taking fitness classes or whatever new adventures you might be taking on. There are benefits to doing it alone and certainly joining up with others.

For myself, I think there is a time for both, and I’m thankful I can experience both as I continue to train for all the races coming up in 2014.

Being a part of the Digital Champions (DC’s) for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon has also allowed me to connect with some pretty inspiring runners and a fantastic online community that I am truly blessed to be involved with. So although many of my training runs will be on my own, I’m not really alone. A supportive online community can also be just what you need!

Here is a shot of the Ottawa Team, a small portion of the DC’s that are encouraging runners who have chosen to make the Toronto Marathon part of their fall racing goals.

Running alone has its perks and for me it is so therapeutic. It brings me back to the reasons I love running. It’s a place for me to really be in touch with who I am and process through the events in my life. However, I will never give up the joy of running in a group. The friendships, encouragements and challenges that come from pushing yourself with others, especially on those long, hot summer runs or, not so long ago, those unbelievable long, cold, snowy ones!

However you run, may you get all you can out of it and be renewed in your love for running!

Tag: marathons

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