Does Running Really Suck?

Mandy, Shalene, Brandy & Deb
 After surviving a rainy 13.1 miles

Four half-marathons. Yes, I have run 13.1 miles  in 4 different cities, Chicago, Indianapolis, Louisville and good ol' Nashville. 

Call me a runner? Nope. 

Do I always love running? Nope. 

My very first training program for my very first half-marathon is one I will never forget. My "long" run at the end of the week called for 3 whole miles. 


It was a cold day so my running buddy and I decided to run inside on the treadmill. After 1.5 miles, I held onto the sides and very slowly and painfully dragged my feet and watched as my mileage lifted to 1.6...1.7...1.8. I stopped. Maybe signing up was a bad idea. Then I looked over and noticed my friend struggling a little too. I guess I only have 1.2 miles left and I thought about rocking little black dresses, feeling my best at a high school reunion, and imagining the feeling of crossing the finish line. 

The last 1.2 seemed to go by a little faster. 

7 weeks later a group of 4 girls went out and ran 12 miles. I nailed it. I was going to rock this half-marathon. Until a few days later, I went out and barely managed .37 miles before I had to turn around. 

10 days later, I finished those 13.1 miles and felt great. There were a few moments when I wanted to quit believe me, but my friends definitely helped me push through to the end.


I ran the next 3 with friends, family and other various forms of support. It's the only way to do it in my mind, which is why I am so passionate about our Go Commando Half/10K/5K Training Program here.

Which is just 8 weeks away: http://gocommandoclarksville.com/


With our 8 week program, Monday-Friday we provide an at home run schedule as well as 2-3 days of crossing training with our Boot Camp Challenge program then on Saturday, we run our long runs....together as a group. 


Race Day is October 18th which will also be my 30th Birthday and I cannot imagine doing anything different than running with the biggest and greatest support group of them all. 

So make up your mind now...can you run 13.1 miles? 6.2 miles? 3.1 miles?

Absolutely. 

Will you be alone? Nope. 

BOOT CAMP CHALLENGE 8 WEEK TRAINING PROGRAM

August 25th-October 18th 

Email mondaymorningfitness@gmail.com for more information 

This year we will have two different guest bloggers, writing about their training experience.

Emily Jones, Clarksville CVB

Brandy Marik, Personal Trainer and Author of "My Daddy is Deployed"