She Runs by the Seashore

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The month of September was a busy one for me, when it came to running, racing and training.

1. I ran my highest monthly mileage ever — 155.43 miles. In August, I ran my then-highest monthly mileage of 150 miles, and then I surpassed that in September with my total of 155.43.
2. I ran five races. These were the Mike Sterling 10K, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon, the Run, White and Blue 5K, the Bethany Beach First Responders Half Marathon (pacer) and the Dogfish Dash 8K.
3. I got to meet Kathrine Switzer. It was awesome to meet a woman who paved the way for us future women runners before women participating was the norm at marathons. She was at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Virginia Beach expo. It’s crazy to think that even women born 50 or so years before me — people who are still alive today — had drastically fewer opportunities than I do. I’m thankful to be able to run and race in whatever distances I choose.
4. I ran for RUN@WORK Day. The Road Runners Club of America hosts RUN@WORK Day each year, and this year, I decided to participate. I invited my co-workers, but did a solo 30-minute run from work on RUN@WORK Day — Sept. 21.
5. I explored the Laurel Highlands. I did get to run in a variety of places thanks to the five races I ran in September, but I also did some fun runs in the Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvania.
6. I went to yoga eight times. I hadn’t been going to yoga that much recently, but my 10-pack of classes was near its expiration date! So, I ended up going to yoga eight times in September. I actually really enjoyed going so often, and I even made it to a 6 a.m. class. I’m not a morning person, but doing yoga in the morning was a great way to start my day, and I hope I’m able to make it happen more often.
7. I kept training for Freedom’s Run. After peaking with a week of 45.11 miles ending on Sept. 16 — which has to be my highest weekly mileage that didn’t include two long runs (i.e. one on Sunday and then the following Saturday) — I tapered with weeks of 30.65 miles (goal: 30), 20.37 miles (goal: 15, but I decided 20 would be OK) and then two runs of 3.75 and 3.79 miles in October the week of my big race.

Stay tuned to hear how Freedom’s Run went!

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