Welcome!

My name is Ashley. I am 24 yrs old and I am running my first 1/2 Marathon on 3.7.10. I will be heading from Boston to Orlando to run the 2010 Disney Princess Half Marathon. Please enjoy my journey over the next months, as I track my training and thoughts about becoming a runner!

My 1/2 Marathon is in....

Monday, April 5, 2010

Thursday, April 1, 2010

CHICAGO MARATHON 10.10.10

It's Official....I am running the Chicago Marathon on 10.10.10 for a charity Chicago Run
It will be my first one!!

I am super excited because all of my Dad's family lives there!!

AHHH I am so hyped right NOW!!!

Monday, March 22, 2010

Follow my other blog

All,

I am taking a hiatus from writing on this blog until I start training for a full marathon. Please visit my other blog http://greer718.blogspot.com/ where I post daily on that and will include running posts!

Thanks

Ashley

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Disney Princess Half Marathon LONG Recap!

Wow..as I sit here 4 days later I still cant believe it...Sunday March 7, 2010 I ran 13.1 (13.25 says my garmin)...my first Half Marathon. It was September 15, 2009 when I clicked the submit button on active.com. I spent the next 5 months gradually increasing my mileage, running in 10 degree weather with 4 layers on, for that moment when I crossed the finish. I feel like I have accomplished so much in these past few months. Training for a race is the perfect way to set goals and accomplish them. I am a Half Marathoner! YAY
The Race weekend. I flew from Boston to Orlando Friday morning with my Mom and my good friends, Jenna and Steve.. My Dad, Step Mom and one of my friend Kristyn all Florida locals now met me as well. On friday, my mom and I went to the expo and got my race bag. I checked my d-tag( timing device) and picked up a headband from Sweaty Bands courtesy of my mom! I got one with Martini Glasses on it to signify my 66 days without Alcohol to prepare for the race post New Years Eve! I then hit Hollywood Studios, Epcot and Magic Kingdom over the next few days!

On race day I got up at 3:00am, showered, dressed, drank a bottle of water and ate my classic pre race meal of a Bagel with Peanut Butter and a Banana...my energizer of choice is Jelly Belly Sport Beans so I had a packet of those and I packed a tylonol and another packet in my capri pants for mid race. At 3:45am a taxi took a bunch of us from my hotel (Regal Sun Resort..loved it) to Epcot. It was now 4am and a freezing 37 degrees out. I did not bring layers. I was only wearing my North Face fleece. After about 20 minutes I checked my coat and shivered my way into the waiting area. I cant describe how cold I was. Next time I will bring disposable layers or some people wore trash bags over them so they could rip them off before the start. Somehow with a 10K race average of 10:04 I got into Corall A which was the first to go! I was able to get up to the start line. For the next hour plus they tried to entertain the FREEZING princesses with the YMCA, Cupid Shuffle, Macarena etc. I participiated to stay warm and keep from beign anxious. Honestly I wasnt as nervous as I thought. Maybe the cold helped in a good way to distract me. At 6:00 the fireworks went off and I started running....not knowing what the outcome would be.

All I know is that I wanted to run the race without stopping and cross the finish without struggle. My goal was 2:20:00

Mile 1:10:21 one small hill, went by fast
Mile 2:10:24 enjoyed local HS bands
Mile 3:10:26 fun characters along the way (did not bring camera, did not stop for pictures)
Mile 4:10:28 Getting closer to Mgic Kingdom...past 5K mark
Mile 5:10:21 Hill going into Magic Kingdom, crowd was great
Mile 6:10:36 heading out back onto the highway, slowed a bit as i was almost half way
Mile 7:10:29 hit the Grand Floridian where there were more spectators..half way mark..I was feeling good and ready to take on the next half
Mile 8:10:38 trying to speed up but my body was definitely feeling a bit tired at this point
Mile 9: 10:31 over the slump and I passed a woman wearing a shirt for a fallen soildier...I started to tear up and said "Keep going, God Bless" as I passed her, what a great honor for whoever that young man was! Made me feel proud too!
Mile 10: 10:36 only a 5k left! Definitely feeling tired but anxious to get to the finish
Mile 11: 10:47 Hit the first major hill/overpass and tried to keep a steady pace going over it...also 11.1 was the farthest distance I had run to date so I didnt know what to expect after this point
Mile 12: 10:47 Hit ANOTHER hill/overpass again trying my best but I was defnitely fatigued and ready to finish...I was so close! I could see the entrace to Epcot!
Mile 13: 10:34 trying to speed up as I was inside Epcot rounding the corner trying to find the finish. I was prepared to look for family and friends at this point.
Mile 13.1 10:22 I stated running on the left hand side close to the crowd so that I could look for my cheer squad. Luckily I saw my Dad and Carol and waved, then Jenna and Steve, then Kristyn then my Mom, they had all spread out along the end of the course. At this point my left calf started twitching and I said "not now" but I could see the finish and I headed for it. I gave it all that had left crossing the finish at a 7:38 pace.

I dont remember what my first thought was..all I remember was my quads and sides aching and being glad that I was walking and not running anymore. I think I was smiling but Im not sure. All I knew is that I had just run my first Half Marathon with no picture or bathroom stops and it felt amazing!

My Chip time was 2:19:27....I beat my goal! Not bad for a first timer right?

Whats next you ask? Another HM on 5.30.10 on Cape Cod (my home town area) and then the CHICAGO MARATHON on 10.10.10. I feel that this HM is only a stepping stone to my true goal of running 26.2 miles...sure a lot of people can run 26.2 miles but right now I cannot. In 7 months I will!

Here are a few pics from the race....

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Disney Princess Half Marathon

I am leaving tomorrow. Wish me luck! Full report when I get back!

Friday, February 26, 2010

My First Half Marathon....

IS IN LESS THAN 10 DAYS!!!!!

Sunday, February 21, 2010

10 Mile Race

So I was not ready for the amount of hills that course presented me. Had a weird numbing(like pins and needles) in my left foot...felt like leg was peg leg but still had mobility..anyone know wha causes this? Almost wanted to give up at mile 4 but I kept pushing...my goal was 1:50 or under but no big deal. I am just glad I finished it. I know my half marathon in Disney will be a lot more FLAT. I guess it was good to get the hills in there though. I ran 11:12 minute miles finishing in 1:52:07

Thursday, February 18, 2010

BBH Run Club

I started a running club at my work that starts on March 1 2010...so far we have 33 runners of all abilities. I have had multiple emails thanking me for starting something like this. I am super excited :)

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

11 MILES!!

I did it....I finally got to 11...well over 11 :)

I finally have the confidence that the 2 extra miles will be purely mental. I broke the 2 hours of running non stop mark...so whats another 20 mins??

T minus 16 days!!!!!

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

It's Official!

I got my Bib number for my Half Marathon...I will proudly be running with number 3139!

Monday, February 8, 2010

PR 5K and 10K!!!

Yesterday I ran the Super Sunday 10K in Boston. This race was also a 5K. The 10K was 2 loops instead of 1. First off it was a sunny day around 15-18 degrees with 20 m/h winds....not the best running conditions. I ran the race with my friend Derly. She is a fellow WW girl and avid runner. We told ourselves that we could do this and there would be no stopping. Mentally it was very hard to get to the finish line and know that for the 5Kers it was over and we had another 3.1 miles to go. Somehow we managed to pull through the wind block and finished breaking my 5K and 10K record. I ran my first in October. You can check out that experience here. My 5k time was 30:50 and my 10K time was 1:02:38. I don't know how I managed to do that but I did and I am super happy. I have a 10Miler in 2 weeks! I dont expect to run that as fast but I will use it as my last big run before my first Half Marathon 2 weeks later!!!

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Success on the Treadmill: 5 Miles

In the past month or so I had eaten dinner and then tried to run on the treadmill...I was lucky if I got a mile or more in. Ive been running in 10 Degree weather which has also been a struggle. On tuesdays I usually do a 5 mile run with a run club. Last night I had dinner plans so it was quicker to skip the club and go to the gym. I challanged myself to run 5 miles on the treadmill because I havent run that far since September when i first decided that I could infact run a 10K if I could do 5 miles. Anyway I did it! It was hard because I used to love running on treadmills and hated to run outside because it was so much harder. Very few people can train for races indoors so I took the challenge to become  a real runner and I began my journey outdoors. The more I got used to it, the more I began to hate treadmills because your legs feel like theyre going so fast and spinning out control. For my speed I started off at 5.4 and worked my way up to 6.2 by the last mile...I finished in 53 minutues 10:38 pace which isnt bad considering ive been running a minute slower or more per mile outside in the cold. Treadmill I don't hate you so much anymore!

Monday, February 1, 2010

Ugh Not getting any better

I only did 7.22 this weekend. My goal was 11.1. The weather was below zero wind chills and my hip muscles/IT band were cramping. I did a walk run combo again which is not typical for me. I have one month left and realistically I am not going to get to 13 before the race but I feel confident that I will get through it to the finish. I hope that it doesnt snow this weekend so that I can run the Super Sunday 10K.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Struggling/Confession of a Nervous Runner

Ok Folks I have only a little more than a month left until I run my first 1/2 marathon. The last "long" run I had was a few weeks ago. I have been having a hard time running alone. My friend Trish usually does long 9-10 mile runs with me. I didnt run 2 weekends ago at all. This sunday I only ran over 3 with walking in between which I never do. Part of that is that I had WAY too many layers on and I was burning up. I missed run club due to snow last week. Well today in Boston it is Sunny and 40 degrees. I WILL run 5 miles tonight at run club and then run 11 this weekend.

I know that I will have the strength to run the 13.1 to the finish in disney I just need to get up a little closer to feel confident and get my running mojo back. I have also had knee pain ever since my first 9 mile run which makes me a bit nervous now. Hopefully this isnt permanant.

I have a 10K race on February 7th and a 10 Mile run on Feburary 21st which will be my last long run before the race most likely. I am going to try to run the 10K at race pace, but I may not run the 10 mile at race pace just to avoid injury. At least its 2 weeks before.

So thats the update...hopefully I find the motivation I need to get back in the game!

Thursday, January 14, 2010

February

I am signed up for the Super Sunday 10K on February 7th in Boston and the Old Fashioned 10 Mile race on February 21st in Foxboro, MA. These will definitely get me ready for my Half Marathon on March 7th! It is coming up fast!!

Monday, January 11, 2010

Over 10 miles!

Yesterday I ran 10.11 in just under 2 hours. It was 13 degrees in Boston. O M G this was hard. If I can do this I can certainly run 13 in nice sunny florida weather!

Cannot wait! :)

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Garmin Forerunner 205

I finally ordered one of these to prep me for my last 2 months...my 1/2 Marathon is coming up so soon!
It tracks speed distace pace and calories burned!