Back on Track

Well its been a while since I posted an entry to my blog. But I needed the time to refocus myself. I have spent the last few months running races, tackling new challenges, and enjoying the small things. Since my last entry, I have battled with and recovered from a foot injury, won four 5ks, ran a half marathon, ran a very competitive 10k in which I won my age group, and tackled a 27 mile ultra trail race. So as you can see, I have been pretty busy. But all this time away from blogging as allowed me to build up and gather my thoughts. It has also made me realize just how much I missed writing. So I am back. And other than being very busy the past few months, I also picked up a sponsor since my last blog entry! I was reached out to by Honey Stinger about a little over a month ago and they offered me a 1 year sponsorship. So I am now a part of the Honey Stinger Hive! And I am excited to see what the 2016 year holds for me and my new sponsor! But what plans do I have for the New Year? What goals do I look to accomplish? Well, first and foremost, I want to take on the Zydeco Marathon in March for the second time! I am looking to finish strong with a new PR! And also qualify for the Boston Marathon as well! Another big goal for this year is to run the Chicago Marathon! Last year, my name was drawn in the lottery and I was all set to go, but I had to unfortunately postpone my entry to this year due to a bad case of plantar fasciitis. So as disappointing as it was, I had to drop out and wait another year. But I have October to look forward to as my place in the marathon is secure. I also have another big goal that I wish to take on this year. And that is to run my first 50 miler! I don't have a specific race in mind just yet for that goal, but I am keeping my options open. And my last major goal for the year is to win a long distance race. As I stated before, I won four 5ks last year, but now I am looking to step it up. It wont be easy, but the biggest obstacle that stands in my way is my mind. As a runner, no matter how much experience you have, your mind will try to make you doubt yourself. When you are in the thick of it, when the fatigue is building up and is becoming too much to bear, and when the physical pain get uncomfortable, you have to keep going. Its getting through the worst that ultimately makes you mentally stronger. The challenges ahead of me this year will try their best to break me down, but I will refuse to back down and quit. And ultimately these challenges will only build me up!