Monday, December 29, 2008

18 weeks to marathon day.

What? Marathon? The Happy Runner? Huh?!?

That's right, folks! I'm running a marathon. No, not now. It's in 18 weeks. Ha!

Readers of this blog may recall that for a while I've said I plan to run another marathon in 2010. For several reasons, I felt that a 2009 marathon was out of the question. But, best laid schemes o' mice an' men and all that and, well, here I am with an open schedule. Perfect for a spring marathon.

My sights are set on the New Jersey Marathon on May 3rd. That's 18 weeks away, which should give me plenty of time to pick up the pace and train wisely and well. And I hope I do because I would like to post a good time. I ran my first -- and only -- marathon in 4 hours and 12 minutes. I would love to break 4 hours for this marathon. I put several of my recent race times into the McMillan Running Calculator and based on the results, I think sub-4 is doable for me (the calculator says I should be able to run 3:47 but -- ha, ha, ha -- I think the calculator has me confused with someone faster and younger!).

So, there you have it. My big plans! I hope to run a few other races this spring, including the Running of the Green (Island) 4-miler on March 7th and the Freihofer's Run for Women on May 30th. Other than that, I'm going to take it as it comes and not try to plan too much. Training for a marathon will be a lot for me. I know I have the drive and dedication to train, I just hope my creaky body and young toddler cooperate!

Anyone else planning to run the NJ Marathon? Let me know!

22 comments:

Janice {Run Far} said...

good luck with all your training.... I hope I can make 2009 a good marathon year for me.

J said...

Yay for a MARATHON! That is great! So exciting! I am sure you can run a sub 4 marathon! Keep up the positive thoughts! 18 weeks are going to fly by!

Marlene said...

Another marathon! Woohoo! You can totally shave those 12 minutes off. Can't wait to hear about the training.

Aron said...

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO so exciting!!!!! my marathon is may 3rd too :) cant wait to share training with you!!

The Laminator said...

Wow...nice! I'm up for Jersey too...probably the half only though. You'll have so much fun. So excited for your choice. Looking forward to hearing about the training specifics.
Congrats.

Anonymous said...

um...no.

but Im excited for you.

does that count?
every year I say Im running Austin.
thus far never happened.

joyRuN said...

OH ME!! I have to sign up yet. And thanks for reminding me that I have 18 weeks - time to get serious :)

Mel-2nd Chances said...

Good luck with your training,and happy new year! Not sure if this will be my marathon year yet... will wait to see what happens!!

Abby said...

Just saw your comment on Run to Finish - I'm planning on doing Jersey this spring, too!

Shoe Running said...

There are a bunch of us with may 3rd marathons! Big day, big day! :) I'm excited to read about your training!

Marci said...

Exciting news. I think sub 4 is very doable, and that's my goal as well. Happy Training!! (You are hardly old, too BTW!!)

Aileen said...

AWESOME!!! I'll be doing Cleveland a little later in the month, but good luck to you! We'll sorta be virtually training together!

RunToTheFinish said...

Ok, I'm looking in to this as someone else also mentioned they are running it! So why this race? If I do come any suggestions on where to stay, where to fly in to?

SeaBreeze said...

Good for you. I'm sure you'll do great. It's wonderful when a schedule opens up like that.

BeachRunner said...

Way to go!! So cool that you are training for the NJ Marathon. WOOOO HOOO!

Happy Training, Happy Runner!!

Katie said...

That's awesome!! Can't wait to read about your training!

Denise said...

I've been *thinking* about the NJ marathon...I do like the thought of training for a Spring marathon.

Blooming Orchid said...

Yay for you!!! You GO! You'll shave those measely 12 + minutes, I am sure.

And yes, I'm interested. But, I'm skerred!!

You have your own personal cheering section right here. I'll be observing your training from afar (blogland). Please keep me posted on how it's coming!

Oz Runner said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog..Spinal Tap is hilarious....best of luck on the marathon training and breaking 4 hours. I am hoping to one day conquer a marathon, not sure it will be in 2009 though. I'd like to start with a half and see how that goes. Happy New Year.

Diana said...

How exciting! We will be here to cheer you on as you reach race day!

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year!

Anonymous said...

You'll enjoy that marathon. I ran it in 2003 the weekend after running Boston and was able to pull a 3:30. It is a very, very flat course. I think the high point was a 15 ft overpass.

Good luck!

http://www.marathonme.com

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