And the training begins

Since deciding to run a half-marathon back in November, I haven't truly started my training. I have basically been doing my normal routine when it came to running (with the exception of one 10-mile run to see if I could do it). Occasionally I would add an extra mile, but nothing with any rhyme or reason to prepare.

A few weeks ago a friend invited me to a running club that meets every Saturday morning. After three weeks this has been a good way to hold me accountable and to kick off my weekends. This has been a good motivator, but I still wasn't following through with everything I needed to do. I'm trying to create a training schedule to help me, and I have some ideas. I'll look online for some advice, but it probably won't become more certain until I decide which race to run.

After yesterday's running club, I decided to buckle down and truly start training. So today I drove down to Mission Bay for a longer run than I have done in a few weeks. In the end it ended up being 6 miles, which is a good place to start for my long runs.

MichaelNorris's Activities | RunKeeper

Love you Angel Ryan!

Running With Ryan

After 40 weeks and 4 days my sister gave birth to my niece Ryan Elizabeth on November 23, 2010 in Germany. She was stillborn. It came completely out of the blue, as my sister was going in for a check-up since she was past her due date. Two days earlier everything had been fine, but on that sad Tuesday it wasn't anymore. It was a big blow to my sister and brother-in-law, as well as the rest of our family.

I wasn't able to talk to my sister for a couple of days after losing Ryan because she was still in the hospital in Germany. I was finally able to speak with her on Thanksgiving Day. It was at the same time, the toughest phone conversation of my life and the one I was most thankful to be a part of. During this call, my sister said she wanted to run a half marathon in memory or Ryan. I instantly knew I had to do the same.

I've been running for the last few years, but I never thought I would attempt a run of this distance. Ryan is now my motivation. I decided to keep a blog of my training as another way to honor her memory.

Please visit my sister's blog (http://www.runningwithryan.net/p/ryans-story.html) for the complete story of Ryan Elizabeth Watts.