to run or not to run?

April 15, 2010


That is the question.

Back in January I wrote about my decision to re-join the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training in May and begin my training for a marathon in October. (I’m going to steal a little from the January post to catch you guys up on my history with TNT)

“In 2008 I received a random brochure in the mail one day from an organization named Team In Training. TNT is a sports training program that raises money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Basically, they will train you for a marathon, half marathon, or triathlon and all you have to do is raise a certain amount of money for charity. I had no clue how they got my name and address, but I was intrigued. I researched TNT and they seemed like a great organization. So, without hesitation I signed up in October of 2008 for the Disney World marathon held in January of 2009. I figured if I was going to run something, I might as well go big and choose the marathon.

When I began training I couldn’t even run a mile. When I finished training I was running 10 miles at a time! Unfortunately, I never made it to the Disney marathon. In November ’08 I hurt my iliotibial band in the my left leg. This is a common runner’s injury, and in my case was caused by not enough cross training. Alright, so what’s the point of this story? The point is that I have never forgotten about Team In Training. In 2008 I raised over $2,000 for TNT and I am ready to tackle this challenge again.”

Alright, so here I am in April thinking about re-joining the TEAM next month and I’ve hit a bump in the road. I have some concerns about committing to train for a marathon (or half marathon) and raising a few thousand dollars as a newly married lady. My new life has just sorta gotten back to normal and I am worried that this adds too much to my plate. In addition to being a new wife, I’m also a full-time Criminal Justice student (online classes), work full-time, edit/film weddings part-time, am trying to develop Serenity Self Defense…not to mention that my heart is sold out for Jesus and I am desperately trying to strengthen my walk with Him. I also have the strongest desire to volunteer at a nursing home sometime soon.

Now, while it may already sound like my plate is loaded, I really believe that with a little lot of time management I could join TNT with no problem. I would love to begin running with a TEAM again, and supporting the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society just feels right. Numerous family members have had cancer, with the most recent being my Pe-Paw. What do you guys think?? I would either be running in the Disney Wine and Dine Half marathon, or Nike’s San Fransisco Half/Full Marathon. (Both are in October) Would it be irresponsible to commit to this? Or should I just do it?

3 Comments

  • Bree

    April 16, 2010 at 1:28 am

    I think if you're passionate about it, and you really want to do it, then you should. I should also say that I am the complete opposite of a runner and therefore have no idea how much time it would actually take to train. but, if you decide not to do it, there's always next year right?

    oh and I'm a criminology major, somewhat similar 🙂

  • Sarah Ann

    April 16, 2010 at 1:28 am

    I think you sound crazy for wanting to run (because I hate it) but not crazy because it's such a great cause. The only thing that I have to do is make sure that I slow down. I never say no and that wears me thin. But if you can handle it, go for it!!!!!!

  • Christy

    April 16, 2010 at 2:26 pm

    I think you should go for it…depending on how much you've trained before. You could DEFINITELY do the Half, the full will really depend on how much you've run before and how much time you can commit to running. Can you said aside 2 1/2 to 3 hours at least once a week to go on a long run?

    By the way, I definitely googled that Wine & Dine Half and I think I'm gonna go for it! Maybe if you started training with someone…a friend, co-worker, your husband, or even a blog buddy, you'd have that much more motivation (and pressure!) to do it!

    Good luck!

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