I haven't written in a while but I have been running. I run just over 20 miles per week now. Recently I have been feeling the itch to put on a racing bib again.
More than just racing though, I have been thinking more and more about a long term goal. When I started back running again in July 2021, my goal was pretty simple. I just wanted to run the loop around Lake Fayetteville. Of all the beautiful places to run around here, that is by far my favorite. It is a total of 5.4 miles, so I had to work back up to that.
It wasn't long before I met that goal. I have enjoyed running that loop many times since. Only a true nerd with significant OCD would know the exact number (36).
My next goal was to run a half marathon again and beat my last time in 2016 when my fitness was in serious decline. I met that goal too. Now what?
The only full marathon that piques my interest at all is New York. It is unfinished business given that I qualified in 2012 when the race was cancelled due to the hurricane. That feels like an excellent long-term goal -- qualifying again, and then actually running the New York Marathon.
One step at a time, my immediate goal is to run a sub-52 minute 10K in December.
Shelly looked at this and said, "You are on the downhill side."
And how, sweetie, and how.
