13.1

13.1 miles in 3 hours 47 minutes.

My goal was 4 hours.

I haven't looked at my times yet, but I must have really kicked things up a notch at some point.  I wonder at what mile it was & how did I do it?  I'm thinking my speed had something to do with the horrible blisters I grew.

The day couldn't have been more beautiful. Sunny, cool, very little breeze. 

Training to walk a half marathon wouldn't be so hard if I could walk faster.  Then I could do a long walk without giving up half of a precious day off from work.

Perhaps next year..............................................

Ong, Diana

For more grisly details, check out ms. caboo's half-marathon recap.

The Jitters

Tomorrow is the big day!  The half-marathon.

Dear ms. caboo is walking it with me.  I've walked with her before and let me tell you, she's fast.  Certainly faster than me.  I hope I don't let the team down!

I've been pretty lackadaisical about my training to be honest.  Pretty much all I have been doing is the long walk part of the training program.  In hindsight I probably shouldn't have told myself  "It doesn't matter about the time, just worry about getting across the finish line!".

Oh well,  I'm getting a bit nervous.  And what do I do when I get nervous?

Crack bad jokes and pretend nothing unusual is going to be happening of course. 

A Nervous Female Ornate Box Turtle Peeps out from Her Shell Photographic Print

Such as, can an atheist use the Acts of God clause when making an insurance claim? 

And the best advice ever:  If you have a headache, do what it says on the aspirin bottle: Take two, and keep away from children.

Wish us luck!

I would walk 500 miles

And I would walk 500 more.......  have I got that song stuck in your head yet? *insert cackle here*

Now that I have got the Daily Earworm out of the way I can update you on my half-marathon training progress.

My progress to date:  I WALKED 10 MILES IN A ROW!!!!!!!




Mechanical Walking Red Robot with Spark Giclee Print

Yes, I hit double digit mileage.  It seems like a small number in comparison to what runners do on a weekly basis.  But for a slow walker, 10 miles is a HUGE time commitment. Although after following some nutrional advice from my personal Half-Marathon Consultant ms. caboo, I actually walked better and faster than ever.  In fact, I completed this 10 mile walk in LESS time than I took to complete my nine mile walk.  Not only did I finish faster, but I finished STRONG.  My last mile was my fastest.  I think I finally experienced endorfins.  Elusive, pesky chemicals that have eluded me my entire life to the extent I thought that they were the stuff of legends.  But no, I do have them.  Yay.

So I'm looking at the possibilty that I may be able to finish the half-marathon in less than 4 hours.  Maybe.  We'll see  :-P

Whoops!

Silly is precisely how I feel right now!  I sorta messed up my training plan for the half-marathon I'm walking in October with ms. caboo (who is a stronger woman than I & will be running it).  I should have begun training at the beginning of July and not the beginning of August as I had thought all summer.  If only I had written it down on my calendar when I chose my training program!  Now I'm looking at needing to do a 5 mile walk this Saturday.  Gulp.  I hope my knees are up to it!

P.S.  Don't fret, I have written all my workouts down so there will be NO MORE EXCUSES

These Feet Were Made For Walking

.....and that's just what they'll do over the next few months!  I have officially lost all my marbles and signed up to walk a half marathon this October.  Ms. Caboo is going as well, but she's way cooler than me and will be running it instead of walking.  It should be a fun weekend -our rooms are already booked and the entourage is prepared to cheer us on to victory.  I won't start my official training until August, but I'll need the time between now and then to remind my body that it is perfectly capable of doing more than cooking, cleaning & reading.  Its actually something I've been wanting to do for a few years, so certainly this must count as a Scaredy Cat Challenge, n'est-ce pas?  And you'll be hitting the trail along with us, right? RIGHT?!