Live Love Run Together

100 Day Countdown My goal race for 2020 is now just 100 days away. I didn’t know that until I received an email from the race organization this morning. Now that I do know that, I suddenly feel the need to go run. I’m feeling mostly excited and a little nervous. My goal race is the Lighthouse 50 which starts up near Torch Lake, Michigan, on May 30 th . The course travels along roads and trails up to the Petoskey Lighthouse. It should be a lovely, scenic run, which I thought would make my first 50 miler memorable and enjoyable. Here are a few other reasons why I chose this race: 1. The course, as I understand it, is mainly on roads and rails-to-trails type trails. Since I have no sense of direction, this should be easy for me to follow and ideally keep me from getting lost and ending up in Iowa. Seriously, GPS is the only reason I get to places on a regular basis. 2. This race also allows runners to be crewed and I’m grateful my husband agreed to keep an eye on me. I...

Hell Hath No Fury Like An Injured Runner It’s true. Hell hath no fury like an injured runner. I’m pretty confident that’s how the saying really goes. I’ve been injured, so I can attest to the frustration, grumpiness and sadness that comes along with injury. My husband would probably attest to that too. Over the years, I’ve been sick, have moved a few times and have had pressing work and family obligations. For all these reasons, I’ve found myself unable to run as I normally do, which is almost daily. I’ve even recently had a few setbacks in training, which have been super frustrating. All is not lost, even though it feels that way. Here's what I’ve learned to get through these setbacks. My Bum Ankle A few years ago, I had an ankle injury that required a few months of physical therapy and some time in a ‘walking book’. I felt angry that I was injured and my body wasn’t healing fast enough. I was equally annoyed by the limitations imposed by the injury. Unable to wa...

Need Motivation? Take A Runcation If you find yourself in a rut or need motivation during these long, winter months; plan a runcation – a vacation planned around a destination run. Runcations are wonderful incentives for keeping up with training, especially during the winter when it’s hard to get outside. There must be a place you’ve always wanted to go or maybe it’s time to see family or friends that live far away. Look for a run in the area you might want to visit and plan a vacation around that event. The winter can be long here in Michigan. The sun hides for days at a time and it can be bitter cold. Even with the beautiful fresh snow we have right now, which is fun to run in, it’s not always easy to get out the door. Since I have a few big races in my near future, I know it’s important to get outside to log miles. Even so, I still have days when I lack the motivation to dress up, lace up and face the cold. Thinking about my next runcation, especially those in warmer areas...