Jan 31; Day one.

Day one in this marathon quest was an odd one. For one thing, my little corner of the world, the Hampton Roads region of Virginia, has a winter storm. There is more than six inches of snow on the ground and the bottom layer is ice. Ice, ice baby. My first day begins with slippery, slick walkways and boots versus running shoes.

I'm beginning with a walk/run plan since I haven't run any real distance in several years. Run 1 min, walk 2 min and repeat 10 times. Okay, today it was just five times. The cold temperature today wasn't the issue. I've got all the gear to deal with the weather. It was the lack of good footing. My budget is too strapped to join a gym so a treadmill is not at my disposal.

And frankly I wouldn't go to one anyway. Those places are full of protein-pushing trainers who really know nothing about nutrition and can't seem to tell you anything other than eat an animal-filled diet. I'm a vegetarian. I concede that I may incorporate salmon into my diet while I'm in training, but I prefer to leave meat out of the equation. Which seems to completely throw off any diet plan a trainer at a gym can provide.

But I digress... (see my link to Vegetarian Times, anyway :^) )

I added cross training with my free weights today. One set of 10 for a series of 8 exercises. Ouch. I'm so out of shape I am already sore.

Oh, and did I mention that "Aunt Flow" is in town? Yep, a fun start.

I made a pot of lentil and vegetable soup with seaweed. I have enough for lunch all this week. Eggs with brown rice, or steel cut oatmeal with dried cranberries and nuts for breakfast. Salads or roasted veggies with whole grain pasta for dinner. Food will be more utilitarian during my training. I love to eat, hence the plus 40 pounds on my butt. So no more baked goods for a while.

I'm getting some Epsom salts for the hot baths I'm sure I'll need.

Good times. Tomorrow is the easy walk for 30 minutes.

Why in the hell am I doing this?

I was asked this question yesterday. My dear friend Robin wanted to know. And I actually paused, having no quick answer for her. I actually had to think about that for a minute. My thought is that one can't possibly have a rational reason for wanting to run 26.2 miles in a marathon. I'm approaching 46 years of age, weigh 40 pounds more than I should, and haven't run more than two miles at one time in over six years.

What's up with that?

Sure, I could have told my friend the typical answer most people say when they decide to run a marathon: I want to prove something to myself; if I can do this I can do anything; etc., etc. My answer is that I just want to. I have for a long time. This time--finally--I have the nerve to do it.

All the tools are in place. I have a coach, the gear, the plan, and now the will. Of course my crazy ass finds it in the middle of winter in the mid-Atlantic. I could still be living in New England, so I'll forgive myself location. However, the moment to be nutty enough to accomplish this goal would have been more than five years ago when I lived in sunny San Diego.

But then I've never done anything the sensible way. Hence my choice of marathons to run: the Marine Corp Marathon on 31 Oct 2010. I enlisted at the age of 17 in October, 1981. Running was a way of life for me back then. I was in shape, proudly wore my uniform, and ran on average 25 miles a week.

Never a marathon. This will be a first.

My coach says that I need to keep a journal. It's important for me to keep track of how I feel and log my progress. This blog will be one of those tools I'll use.

See Mo run.