A New Year, A New Challenge?

So it's 2011, people.  I feel like last year just came and went.  Overall, I'd say 2010 went decent.  If I have to go by the guideline that I should do something that scares me, well, I did it.  The triathlon scared me for eight weeks.  Now I'm wondering what I should do to "scare" me this year.

Since the tri, I've been lifting twice a week and running twice a week.  I've built up my mileage such that I've been running at least six miles each run for the past couple of weeks.  I wouldn't say I'm addicted to running, since I seem to have a love/hate relationship with it.  There are days where I dread going out in the cold or to the boring treadmill at the gym.  Then there's the constant grind for a few miles before I even start feeling good about running.  But man, right when I hit the one hour mark, I feel great.  I mean, what a feeling it is to know that your mind and will is strong enough to push your body!  I hit 10K distance a few weeks ago, and I felt GREAT.  I reached 8 miles one run a couple of weeks ago, and that felt AWESOME despite the fact I could barely walk at the end.  So yeah, love/hate.

I haven't ran outside for about a week since the snowstorm hit.  It's draining to watch where you're landing your foot strikes and hope you didn't hit ice.  So, I've been running at Planet Fitness on the treadmill.  Downside is that the treadmill automatically starts cooldown after one hour.  So I aim to be faster each time I go to the treadmill.  I usually aim for increasing distance when I'm running outdoors.

Recently, my cousin has been bugging me to do a half-marathon with him.  Needless to say, a 2+ hour run is not very appealing to me at all.  Thoughts of hitting the wall or succumbing to a walk has been discouraging me from committing.  Yet, I've been constantly running twice a week, always aiming for 6+ miles each run.  The half is in March,  and I have plenty of time to train for it.  Not to mention the fact I did run 8 miles helps.  I'll admit, the half scares me a bit.  Can I actually run for that long?  Lately, I've been questioning why I convince myself out of doing things that scare me.  So, I'm pretty certain that I will attempt the half in March.    I just need to bring myself to sign up for it.  Haha.

So depending on how soon I decide, 2011's first challenge will be a half-marathon.  Now to go find some new running shoes!


Last weigh-in:
169.0 lb (The running is making it difficult to keep building mass)