26.2

(This is me and the Frederixon clan after the first time I was conned into doing a race. The smile is a lie.)

Some (all) of my most horrific exercise-like memories involve the Frederixon family. I learned early on that a Frederixon family vacation wasn’t a “vacation” unless it included some sort of physical activity. Vacation at the beach? Right after we run this race. Wine tasting? Gotta bike 20 miles uphill to get to the winery. Let’s go see the other side of the bay, we can take the boat! By boat they meant kayak.There’s a great view just up this hill! The hill was Mount Everest, I’m not even exaggerating (okay, I’m exaggerating, but all the other parts are true). Regardless of what we were doing, a member of the Frederixon family was there to experience the suffering with me. I learned too late the importance of asking about the details of the vacation before agreeing to go (I now know that Memorial Day=putting a boat into water and anything that has to do with Mackinac is their way of saying ‘We’re doing the Dalmac!’)

(This is Sheila and I during one of our first hiking trips. While the chipmunk looks nice, I’m pretty sure it tried to attack us moments after this picture was taken.)

Regardless of all the painful (physically, I was always sore for like weeks after vacationing with them) memories, I think some of their spunk has finally rubbed off on me. Lately, I’ve gotten this crazy idea in my head that I am not only going to run another race, but a big race. I’m thinking 26.2 big. I know, it’s complete madness that this is even something that I’m considering. Maybe I want to feel the gratifying sense of accomplishment after I cross the finish line or maybe I just really want people to cheer for me and hold up signs (definitely the second). Regardless of the reason, I have the Freds to thank for this (probably brief) moment of insanity. Also, props to the 100 year old man who is still running marathons – if he can do it, so can I!

So, to prepare for this possible race, I’ve been doing a lot of research. I’ve even created a Pinterest board with all the things I’m finding (http://www.pinterest.com/samisfierce/262/). Here’s a list of the 5 best tips I’ve found in case you want to join the crazy club and run with me!

1. Use a training schedule – Today I completed Day 3 of training, however, each morning when I got up I could think of a million things I would rather do than run on the windy streets of Chicago during rush hour. Using a training schedule has helped a ton because I don’t want to fall behind. I really like the one in the Nike Running app, however there are a lot of different ones. Find one that works for you.

2. Diets are important – Like I said, I’m on Day 3 so I can’t say much from experience here. However, my googling has told me that what you eat is extremely important. Fruits, veggies, proteins and carbs shall be my best friends moving forward. How can you hate a diet that tells you to eat more carbs!?

3. Use an app (or something similar) to help monitor your running – I absolutely love using RunKeeper. It keeps me up to speed (pun intended!) with my pace, distance, location, etc. It even tells me how many calories I’m burning which is a major plus. There are tons of great apps out there, check out this link to see some of them: http://blog.vanns.com/get-out-and-run-top-5-marathon-training-apps/

4. Shoes – I always knew shoes were important in life but now they’ve gone up a few notches. I’m currently rocking some Nike Frees, however, I think once I start running some real distance I’ll have to consider getting new ones. The Shoe Advisor on Runner’s World seems like a great tool: http://www.runnersworld.com/shoe-finder/shoe-advisor

(My current Nikes are pretty neat.)

5. Keep up your inspiration – The saying is that when you want to quit, remember why you started. Whether it’s imagining yourself in marathon shape or visualizing the signs and people cheering for you, keep that image in mind when the running gets hard.

Like I said, I’m fairly new to this whole training thing so I’m sure I will post more about it once things get more intense (or I won’t, this whole idea could really go either way). Either way, if you have any marathon training tips feel free to holla atcha girl!