The End Is The Beginning (Is The End), or Halfway There

As of Saturday (August 2), I am halfway done with training. Saturday was the end of Week 12. I have been a runner for essentially three months. This was inherently true this weekend, as I brought my running gear with me to Portland for a friend's bachelorette weekend. Early Saturday morning, before heading out to the beach for bachelorette antics, I headed out on the Springwater Trail in Portland (it runs right along the Willamette) and put in around 7.5 miles. It was a great run and realizing that I had taken time out of a weekend of unhealthy activities to run made me realize that I had in fact become a runner.*

Of course, becoming a runner is a full-time kind of job. Once you're a runner, you're always going to have to practice--much like being a lawyer or a doctor. I'm still a ways off from where I would like to be in terms of pace and endurance, etc., but I am certain that I will finish this race on October 19 and that I will continue to run road races as long as my body will let me. I never thought that I would say something like that.

*While I had a blast at the bachelorette party, it was fairly clear that the salty, fried, cheesy food and countless alcoholic beverages that I consumed were not the norm for me, nor would they be anytime in the near future if I want to still be a runner.