Well here goes somethin'.
My name is Tenaya, and I'm on quite a mission. I'm currently training for the 3M Half Marathon Relay which means I'll either be running 6.4 or 6.7 miles, depending on which leg of the race I choose.
I'm in my 3rd solid week of training and so far so good! I never imagined a month ago that I would be up to running 2.6 miles already! Wondering how tough it's been to get to this point? Here's a little background...
I'm 22, and have always been active and adventurous. However, I'm not your typical "athletic" body type, I'm a curvy girl who's always been like this. I've recently discovered that one reason for my constant battle with extra body weight stems from my intolerance to gluten and the problems that it caused in my digestive system. I've tried several diets and all worked for a short time, but the weight always seemed to creep back up on me. Part of my journey and desire to run this marathon relay certainly comes from wanting to be healthy, drop some weight, and look great, as well as just prove to myself that I can do this.
When I was asked by a friend to do this relay, I thought to myself "Can I even do that in 4 months? Do I have enough time to get into shape and build up over 6 miles worth of endurance?". Even though I had my doubts, I quickly agreed to team up with her and go for it.
Soon I began to work out more often at the gym, and added on 3 times as much cardio than I normally do. By the end of the 1st week I was doing well - running at least a mile on the treadmill or around the neighborhood.
By the end of the 2nd week I was doing even better - running at least 1 - 3 miles a day (total) for 4 or 5 days out of the week. I really think I have an advantage because of all the time growing up in school playing sports and running cross country for a few years, because I certainly didn't imagine I'd be up to running almost a third of my total goal milage in two weeks!
Now here we are - It's week 3, and man am I sore. From battling a sinus infection and sore throat over the weekend I was determined to get back on track with my running this week. Today was my first attempt at 3 miles around the neighborhood and I did better than I expected - 2.65 miles in 27:33. I'm no olympic athlete, but for a girl who's been out of the fitness game for a while, I'm really happy with that!
My idea to blog about my 4 month journey leading up to the January 30, 2011 race was to chronicle my adventure into health and fitness, and to hopefully help anyone else who gets discouraged about their body or current fitness level. If I can do it, you can do it, it just takes some heart.
If you're interested in the 3M Half Marathon you can find all the info at 3M Half Marathon and Relay
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