Counting down . . .

Back in Tennessee, with frigid weather and snow in the weather predictions for the week, so it looks as if I'll be on the treadmill rather than the road for the next few days.

For this serious slow runner, the big annual milepost is the Tom King Classic 1/2 Marathon, which runs in Nashville on the second Saturday of March. My sort-of-daily casual jogging routine becomes a training regimen around Thanksgiving, which is to say that I get more or less serious around New Year's, and begin panicking around February.

Thus, The Countdown:

The Countdown to Tom King 1/2 Marathon March 13

Days until TK	Miles logged today	Comments
68	3	treadmill

I hope to offer a training, technique or motivational tip every time I post, beginning here.

Have you heard the saying that the hardest steps of any run are the ones from the couch to the front door? If, like me, you find it hard to get up and get going, take inspiration from the story of Jeff Clark, an over-the-road truck driver -- and runner -- as told in this article from the Runner's World site.

Now, lace up and go!

Crrranking up again

It's New Year's Day 2010. I've been a teensy bit better about my running discipline than about this blog, but it's Resolution Day, so here's to good intentions fulfilled.

This diary trailed off after the 2007 Tom King Half Marathon. Therefore today's entry offers a brief recap of that day, plus two years of running, and two more 13.1 milers.

For 2007, with QMH eating pain pills and using a walker to get around, and with Kid Kate leaving me in the dust at Mile 1, I was pretty much alone with my mp3 player. I ran my best time ever, at 2:10 and some ticks. I am a serious slow runner, as mentioned in previous posts, but I indulge in some pride at having finished 34th in my 55-59 age group, and 742nd in the race overall. Anyone who finishes a half marathon at any pace, ever, is in a small percentile of the population at large, and is entitled to remember that, especially when in fatigue or pain.

In 2008, QMH beat the odds and made it back to the race. Her back injury in January '07 had put her on the couch for 10 weeks, but between the passage of time and some very useful yoga, she has made a significant recovery. In the depth of that downtime, our doctor told me that QMH might have to forget about running any more. I'm glad Doctor Maggie was wrong on this one.

Just the same, 13.1 miles was a long, slow slog. The 2008 Tom King begain in a booming thunderstorm; really dangerous looking and sounding. Pre-race, many runners took shelter from the intense downpour beneath the stadium ramps. Only a few brave or foolish souls stepped up to the starting line, ourselves among them. For the first mile or two the lightning and thunder made the soggy runners flinch often. QMH's stamina was way down, but we persevered - the time was 2:56, if anyone must know - and got back to LP Field before they dismantled the finish line. More importantly, there was still some food at the buffet when we hobbled up there.

2009 was the coldest, wettest Tom King we have ever done. We had sacrificed some training time to a trip to the presidential inauguration, but that was way worth it. QMH was further under-trained, owing to theater and visits to Kid Kate's college. It was really ugly, weather-wise, which slowed us down, and tended to push up our focus on aches, pains, stiffening joints and muscles. But, done is done, in 2:28.

That'll do for now. In posts to come, I'll share some more recent training experiences, and chronicle my train-up to the 16th Annual Tom King Half Marathon, coming on March 13.

Feets don't fail us now!