A Marathon?

I started running two years ago. I ran my first race, the Baltimore Women's Classic-5K, in Jun 2009. I ran my second race, the Catonsville Fall into Fitness-10K, in October 2009. Currently, I am training for my first 10 mile race, to take place in June 2010.

I've been asked several times if I'm going to run a half marathon next or even a marathon. Originally, my doubts about running anything longer than a 10 mile race had to do with, shall we say, ways of relieving myself. If I'm racing, I want the best possible time I can get. That doesn't include a 20 min stop at the port-a-potty.

Right now, the prospect of running a 10 mile race is daunting. Two weeks ago, as I struggled to run 7 miles, I wondered if I wanted to run longer races. I wasn't sure I wanted to run the 10 mile race. Running was much more fun to me when I was running shorter distances for fun and exercise, not because I HAVE to, in order to make it through this race. I could work on my speed when running 4 miles. When trying to run 10 miles, I have to focus on completing the miles, not how fast I'm running them.

Over the weekend, I was reading a runner magazine passed along to me by a friend. In it, was an article stating it's actually healthier for your body to run the shorter distances than it is to run the marathons. I found myself very happy to read this article, thinking it gives me a good reason to keep running the shorter races and not focus on what I picture to be my next goal. Yet, sitting in traffic today, I found myself behind a vehicle that had one of those 26.2 stickers on it. I sat there staring at that sticker and thinking that I wanted one. I want to be able to say I ran a marathon. If only once, I want to be able to say I did it.

Does that mean I'm going to do it? I don't know yet. But I suppose it is a possibility. For now, it's the 10 mile race. I suppose a half marathon is only 3 miles longer...no reason really not to do it. In theory, if I can run 10 miles, I can run 13, right?