While 2012 was a great running year for me—conquering three more half marathons, including an unexpected PR at the Louisiana Marathon—I’ve known for some time that I need to take a break from distance running and training. Right now, however, committing to that decision, which I know to be the best route for me to [...]

Normally when I’d sit down to write a race recap that includes the phrase “I surprised myself,” it’d mean that I ran an unexpected PR or that I accomplished something I never thought I could. This year’s Jazz Half Marathon wasn’t a PR by any means, but I managed to handle the race well and [...]

Last week, the CYJ bloggers had a discussion in our Facebook group about the races we plan to run this fall. It was cool to read about how everyone’s training is coming along, and about all the races they have planned. And for some who aren’t planning to race too much this fall, it’s been [...]

Here we are, 12 days out from the Jazz Half Marathon. I haven’t been chronicling my training for this race besides putting my (sparse) workouts into dailymile. That’s right, my runs have been few and far between for this race thanks to a head-cold-turned-chest-cold that I couldn’t shake for more than a month. Does this sound familiar? [...]

Many runners relish the fact that our sport of choice is relatively environmentally friendly. For example, running on pavement doesn’t use electricity, runners often donate old shoes to be reused or recycled, and races are going “green” in increasing numbers to reduce the amount of paper used. One thing many of us probably haven’t thought [...]

Photo: stock.xchng It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of doing as little training as possible to get the results I want as a runner. And this approach has worked well for me, twice, using a training program I base off the Run Less, Run Faster model. I’m also a fan of this approach because [...]

Yesterday, a friend posted a link to an article about the way that commercialization of races has affected the sport. Specifically, the author focuses on the Competitor Group and the way that their Rock ‘n’ Roll series of races draw people to the sport for the wrong reasons, that the well-attended races have all but [...]

I’ve said before and will say again that I’m not the athlete I used to be. My days of All-American status, National Reportable Times, All-Conference honors, and the like are nearly a decade behind me. Gone, too, is the girl who was named the Ironwoman of her college swim team, with records for bench press [...]

Yesterday’s Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans half marathon was my fourth race at that distance. I finally feel like I really know what to expect and how to balance the physical challenge of running the distance with the emotional swings I encounter during the race. I’m also comfortable pushing myself to my limits, gunning for [...]

If there’s anything I’ve learned this winter besides the fact that I really love running half marathons, it’s the fact that I should watch myself when I’m feeling particularly trigger-happy after a race. By this, I mean the feeling that you get once you’ve done a race and want to sign up for more (and [...]

We’re just about a week out of the Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans half marathon, and it’s fair to say my perspective on this race has changed. A year ago, this race was my first half marathon, and my finish represented a triumph over a nagging IT band injury and the completion of something I’d [...]