Half Marathon Training and A Virtual Race

Today was my third time running with the TNT training group.  The first two were really great.  I loved having people to run with and talk to.  We are all at different paces, and it was nice to have a few that ran at my pace.

Some are new and some are alum.  It is really great hearing why everyone is working with TNT and nice to see that they come back and do it again and again.  Half are training for a full marathon and the other half are training for the half.  Most of us are doing the Nike Women's Marathon and it is really cool to train with the people I will be traveling with.

My first week, I just ran 2 miles.  I was trying to get a feel for how things worked, plus we are running in a place I have never been, which is Brown University.  It is a nice neighborhood, but I really don't know the streets and I am a person who easily gets lost.

Week two, I ran four miles with the group.  Again, it was a nice run and I was happy to meet a couple new people.  One of the new ladies, had lost 25 pounds doing Weight Watchers and that is very encouraging.  WW has been going pretty good.  I am down 5 pounds, which I am happy about.  I had a slow start, and last week, I didn't lose anything, but I am not discouraged, just gonna keep moving forward.

After today's run, 4.6 miles.

This brings me to today, week three of my training.  A nice size group showed up but they were all training for the full marathon and set out for 6 or more miles.  I was the only one who was doing the half and my plan today was four miles.  They were a bit faster than me too, so I ran alone.  Not really a big deal. I had my music and I was able to see where they were turning and I just paid attention to the street signs.  I did not get lost and I finished at 4.6 miles.

Next week I am planning on 5 and I just hope I will have some of the half marathoners to run with as well as people who run at my pace.  It is so much nicer to have people to chat with and to encourage you.  This is what I love about the training group and I hope that days like today are not frequent.

All in all, it has been a pleasant experience so far and I am happy that I am part of TNT.

On to my fundraising.  I am almost to the half way mark and I just want to say thanks again to those who have donated.  None of this would be possible without you.

Most of you know, I am holding a Virtual Race to help with my fundraising.  And those of you that know me, know that I am pretty much clueless when it comes to the computer.  For the last 4 weeks, I have been adverting my race with a link that did not work.  This is very discouraging as I am sure I lost a few people who may not check back to see if it is working now.

To make it worth it, I need at least 50 people to register and I am only at 12.  I know most of you reading are runners so please consider this race as part of your race plans for the year.  I cannot think of anything better than doing what we do best, run/race while giving to a cause that will help those that need it most.

So here it is, the Run Strong, Think Big Virtual Run and Walk.  It will be held July 21 and July 22.  You can run anywhere, anytime that weekend and everyone who finishes will get a medal.  You just need to go to my fundraising page and donate $20 and write the word RACE in the comments.

Please feel free to invite your family and friends and those of you who blog, please share it with your readers also.  It might be fun, if you can organize a group and run together.  I hope you will share any photos or stories of your run with me here or my Facebook page.

Together, we are making a difference by doing what we do best.  We run, we race and sometimes we walk, but we are all runners!  So run with me either literally or virtually, lets do this together.

Run Strong, Think Big!