Next up: Nike Women’s Half Marathon in San Francisco 2015

I put my name in the lottery this year for the Nike Women’s Half Marathon in San Francisco thinking it was likely I wouldn’t get in. With the SeaWheeze eight weeks before, it seemed like it would be a blessing in disguise if I didn’t get in. I loved running it the past two years, but last year I was ready to take a bit of a break after running the SeaWheeze. Since I was indecisive, it seemed best to leave it up to the machine to decide.

I got in (with a lot of mixed emotions) and I am just now starting to get excited about it and feel good about training. But that training won’t be easy. I have a long trip during the last month of training (which means long runs in a foreign country), and I have been generally tired and a bit burned out on running so soon after crossing the finish.

But I also realized I am in damn good shape for this race.

I am starting to feel recovered and stronger than I was for the first race. I also can be a bit more flexible with my training. I have chilled out on trying to squeeze in my long runs before work when I have a busy week. Yesterday I split up my eight mile long run into two runs – one that included ultimate frisbee with my coworkers in the morning and a 3.5 mile run at race pace after. Mentally it was exhausting, but it made me feel strong and like I’m ready.

So here’s to loosening up, to not worrying so much, to being more flexible. I get to run and explore new places. I get to enjoy another fantastic race, and I don’t have to wait until 2016 to do it. I’m going to be ready, and I am going for a PR.

Who’s with me?