Health and Running » Marathon

What is it about 26.2?

Natalie — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:50:34 +0000

My husband and I were arguing one night about the reality of my being able to train for a 26.2 once we had our baby. The issue is not so much whether I am capable of training to run the marathon distance but whether or not we can figure out the family balance. I would [...]

Post from: Health and Running

What is it about 26.2?

Has Anyone Seen My Speed?

Natalie — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 17:00:51 +0000

I swear I was fast. At least, for me, in my age group, for my distances. I spent a good chunk of time and effort working on speed and got to a very comfortable place this year where my ‘slow, easy’ run was at 8:40, my 5k pace was near 7 minutes and my other [...]

Post from: Health and Running

Has Anyone Seen My Speed?

Race Recap: 5k & Marathon Weekend–LPRM

Natalie — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 13:48:06 +0000

When I found the Lower Potomac River Marathon online the first thing I did was email the race director to make sure there was still room in the field. She wrote me back almost immediately confirming they still had space and I was quickly hitting ‘submit’ on Active.com. This event was featured in the March [...]

Post from: Health and Running

Race Recap: 5k & Marathon Weekend–LPRM

Race Recap: 5k & Marathon Weekend–St. Patrick’s 5k

Natalie — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 12:27:43 +0000

A sure sign that spring is here is when weekends start filling up with races. In my case, it just so happened that I had back-to-back races in one weekend. I have had weekends where each weekend I’m racing but never before I had done one event on Saturday immediately followed by an event on [...]

Post from: Health and Running

Race Recap: 5k & Marathon Weekend–St. Patrick’s 5k

On the Other Side of the Cup

Natalie — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 23:30:46 +0000

In any race I always make a point of saying ‘thank you’ to the volunteers. Volunteers are critical for making a race successful and for making the runner’s experience positive. They provide everything from security to safety to organization, signage and the all-important water stop. A couple years ago I volunteered for the Zooma Half [...]

Post from: Health and Running

On the Other Side of the Cup

When Long Becomes Short

Natalie — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 02:51:07 +0000

One of the things I love about distance training is the tipping point when all of a sudden what were once long runs become short runs. I tend to spend 2-3 months each winter rebuilding my base and my benchmark is always 6 miles. I always want to get to the point where I can [...]

Post from: Health and Running

When Long Becomes Short

Setting & Adjusting the Race Pace Goal

Natalie — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 13:00:06 +0000

When I first started doing running races, I raced to participate, to experience the race, and that was about it. Let me first say that there is absolutely nothing wrong in racing with that mindset. My perception of racing started to change as I learned more about running, form, training techniques and drills, and my [...]

Post from: Health and Running

Setting & Adjusting the Race Pace Goal

5K Races: Fun, Quick, & Good Practice

Natalie — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 01:27:39 +0000

I believe one of the first 5K races I ever did was freshman or sophomore year at college. It was probably the farthest I’d ever run and I’m positive I didn’t train. After that first 5K I continued to run, added longer distances to my work-outs, and found myself signing up for 10Ks, 10-milers, and [...]

Post from: Health and Running

5K Races: Fun, Quick, & Good Practice

Coughing, Sniffling, and Running

Natalie — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:12:18 +0000

A few mornings ago I woke up with that subtle, yet horrible sensation of a sore throat coming on. I swigged down some Airborne, started popping Vitamin C, and broke out Sudafed nasal decongestant pills (one of the few medicines in my cabinet). The sore throat came and went but quickly moved on to a [...]

Post from: Health and Running

Coughing, Sniffling, and Running

The Treadmill Ten

Natalie — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 18:17:40 +0000

I’m not a huge fan of running on treadmills. It’s also not something I’m good at which makes me like it even less. But when it’s 45 degrees outside and there is a steady, heavy, cold rain, I have to admit I’d rather run on the treadmill than in that weather. The trouble is that [...]

Post from: Health and Running

The Treadmill Ten