So, I think you guys know by now that both Meredith and I work in the PR industry and sometimes we’ll shamelessly plug friends and/or products if it relates to achieving a healthy lifestyle. And we definitely make sure it is something we have done or would do, because that’s just wrong if you’re recommending a product without supporting it…

I changed jobs about a month ago and now work for 3M doing PR for some of their products AND I also get to help out with the 3M Half Marathon (which I ran back in January). So in the spirit of transparency, I just wanted to make that clear before I hop onto the following awesome rant about why you should sign up for the 2011 race, which takes place on January 30, 2011 in North Austin.

• Reason 1: Because training for a race helps you lose weight. 
• Reason 2: The race is practically all downhill, so you have a better chance of setting your personal best, if you’re into that kinda thing.
• Reason 3: What other race in Austin let’s you feel like you accomplished a bit more than a normal half-marathon by not running in a circle, but literally running from the Arboretum to downtown?
• Reason 4: The goodie bag owns. Last year, I got tons of adhesive bandages, post-its, tape, the works. This year, let’s just say the goodie bag makes last year’s bag look lame. We’ll be sharing what some of the goodies are via Facebook and Twitter, so make sure you follow @3mhalfmarathon for more information on that stuff.
• Reason 5: It’s a great reason to visit Austin. A lot of folks come from out of town to run this race,
• Reason 6: It’s fabulous prep for the Livestrong Austin Marathon and Half Marathon. I actually improved my time between both of the races, which was awesome!
• Reason 7: If you register before July 1, you’ll get a cheaper rate than if you register after that date. Just in case you “roll” frugal like I do.

So register now, and use it as that “end goal” of getting fit. Maybe you need motivation to take that first step. As someone who used the White Rock Half Marathon to do that very thing back in 2008, it’s totally worth it.

I’m still sore from Sunday. I almost fell down the stairs twice on Monday, and my co-workers can attest that the majority of Tuesday was spent hobbling around in crazy pain.

But my most pain-free moments came from bootcamp Tuesday evening. To be honest, I’m in as much shock as you are. I could barely move from my cube into Meredith’s Tuesday without wanting to yell. Yet, 10 minutes into a workout, I was able to sprint, lunge and squat (though not at my normal levels).

Why is this? Monday night, I swam knowing that zero impact and little gravity in the water would be a huge asset to helping me feel normal again (instead of wallowing in pain in my bed for the past few days). And it was. By Tuesday I didn’t want to kill myself.

Active.com hs a great training document called “tips for speedy and efficient half-marathon recovery” and I think it is recommended reading for anyone who has finished a race — even if it is your first 5k (though I probably would avoid some of the food recommendations if you just finished a 5k because you’ll ended up gaining weight… haha). Runner’s World also had some great advice too. Apparently cross training is key (so stuff like swimming, cycling, bootcamps with lots of stretching, yoga, etc.). And general rule of thumb is to take a day off for every mile you ran (hahaha… that’s like giving me a challenge to do that…).

So it sounds like I’ll be slowly recovering for the next two weeks (with only tiny runs at an easy pace) and then it will almost be time for the Austin Half Marathon on Valentine’s Day! Wee! Nothing says love like running for 2+ hours straight.

(and yes, I’m crazy… I’ve already been told this by everyone)

I’m going to confess something. Remember how I had planned to run some half-marathons in 2010, and I was going to smash my previous PR time of 2:43 from the Dallas Half in 2008? You probably don’t remember that post. But I do.

In late November, I completely stopped running. It was probably a mix of a hectic work schedule, general holiday laziness, and I may have lost my motivation to run. That and my favorite purple running shoes broke when the tread fell off and I couldn’t afford a new pair (running shoes can be pretty expensive and I just couldn’t justify the cost).

Anywho, problem was, I had already paid to run in both the 3M and Austin Half-Marathon’s back in August (before my finances had sucked the life out of me, or else I wouldn’t have signed up for these).

And since I hadn’t been running the past 9 weeks (other than some sprints during bootcamp), no idiot would even consider running 13.1 miles. Right??

Meet an idiot.

My friend and boss Mindy decided to run the 3M Half Marathon (she’s in a marathon training program) and asked if she could crash at my place and then we could carpool together. Which was a great forcing function into making me run.

So Saturday night, after a fun dinner with the @fatroll girls (I made a @fatroll fail spaghana — lasagna with angel hair pasta instead of lasagna noodles), we went to bed at 10 pm and got up at 5:15. We ate a quick breakfast (peanut butter pancakes were a most excellent fuel source) and drove (or got blown by the wind) to North Austin.

I don’t really know how fast the wind was gusting — by my non-professional estimates it had to be gusts in the 40 mph range — and it was enough to delay the race by an hour!! AN HOUR! You have several thousand runners all huddled together to keep from blowing away while organizers had to find ways to keep the barricades from falling over in the wind. It was insane.

But finally, I started running. And like any first run after a break, it feels so glorious. Like you’re seeing your best friend for the first time in months. (it isn’t until the second run that your body protests the fact you haven’t run in awhile)

This course is awesome because among its features is a 4.8 mile drop. Uh, score! How can you not PR (personal record) this course, right?! Haha…

So I was definitely not running my fastest pace — partially on purpose — because the last time I had run this far was in February 2009. (once again, idiot) And the furthest distance I had done in the past three months was only 7 miles (bigger idiot).

So not shockingly, I hit a wall right at 7.2 miles. My pace had dropped from an 11:15 min/mile to a horrible 14 min/mile (which is the rate in which some walk… but I assure you my rotation was still operating like I was running). And that’s when I heard:

“BALTHROP!”

And lo and behold, it was my workout hero Kim/@energeticspace! To be honest, I was a little shocked to see her. Her general bad-assness has her running in a much different league than I do (she happily does 8 min/mile without much effort).

I was so excited to see her, until I saw her swollen and cut up hand/wrist and torn up pants. Apparently she had a spill around Mile 6 trying to avoid a dreaded pot hole. To be honest, I don’t know how she continued running — but she did and still managed to beat my time. Like I said, she’s a bad-ass. For the bit we ran together (before she passed my ass), I was able to get my pace back up to a more respectable level.

Normally around mile 8 or 9 I get a slight resurgence, which was the case. And then I hit mile 11. Mile 11 is where you could see downtown, but it didn’t offer you much solace because you are still 2.1 miles away from it. And the most glorious sign that a half-marathoner likes to see is the Mile 12 marker, because you know you’re just a mile away.

And then I saw the finish line (which still managed to be about three minutes away from the time I saw it). I almost teared up a bit because I honestly did not think I was going to finish this thing. I’m not just saying that either — I have never run a race with my cell phone until this one. I also ran with a bottle of water, which helped for two reasons: I didn’t have to waste time at water stops and I didn’t have to “stop” at the water stops.

I knew if I started walking (which I never had to, even though my pace towards the end would possibly suggest differently), I wouldn’t be able to stop walking. Or worse, I would try to start running again, and would give up after a few minutes and go back to walking.

I can’t wait to see the picture of me crossing the finish line, because I made absolutely no effort to pick up my speed. My legs had literally given me everything and I knew once I stopped, I risked falling (which I almost did after crossing). And one of the best moments was looking down at my Garmin and realizing I had beat my previous half-marathon time by nine minutes! Yippee! Of course, I immediately wanted to bop myself — because that time difference would have been greater if I had actually trained. Eh, whatevs. I’m happy.

Second best moment will be later today when I see my grandfather! I haven’t seen him in awhile and my dad always tells him that I run half-marathons, and so he thinks I’m totally cool. Which is just awesome. Unfortunately, I’m also seeing him in the worst of circumstances and he may not be conscious when I tell him, but hopefully he’ll be having a good day. What a great reason to run this race!

So here are a few tips to help get you through a half-marathon:

• Run for a reason. Maybe it’s for a person, and organization or your own personal goals — whatever it is, own it and use it as your fuel.
• Run with a friend. Even just for a moment, their energy gives you energy to carry on.
• Don’t be a dumbass and not train. Generally, you want to be at your best for these things. It’s as much mental as it is physical. Luckily, I had run two before, so mentally, I was fit and happy to be there. Physically, let’s just say that some of the older folks I’ll be seeing at the assisted living facility today will be moving faster than I am. I HURT.
• Don’t just run when you train. While I could say I’m a badass for beating my previous time without any training, the fact is that’s a lie. Yes, I didn’t run at all the past several weeks, but I did do bootcamps and regular weights. That played a huge role and I think it is an important reminder that while getting your miles in is important, having a well-rounded workout with muscle confusion is equally important. I think shedding 15 pounds from my last half-marathon probably helped too You are carrying less poundage, so you go faster! YAY @fatroll win!

Hopefully by Tuesday I’ll be back in the saddle and ready to kick it at bootcamp on Tuesday. But for now, I’m going to enjoy my pain and relish in the fact that I finished another half-marathon! YIPPEE!

There are two times in my life when I hated my name. One was when Jenny Craig started making commercials (fifth grade, or around 1992-1993). Getting called Jenny Craig was funny the first time, but subsequent times just pissed me off. And were boys trying to tell me to lose weight? Good grief, I was 5 ft. 2 in. and 105 pounds. Cut me some slack, jerks.

Second time was only a few years later when Forrest Gump came out in 1994. “Run, Forrest, Run” in a horribly shoddy Georgia accent by pubescent boys is just enough to make me still want to throw up a little in my mouth.

If you recall the movie’s plot, Forrest wasn’t good at many things, but the boy sure could run.

I’m thinking of that line, because half-marathon/marathon training season is approaching! YAY! Kristine and I happily ran the Austin half-marathon last year and we’re going to train together this year! Even better, this year I’m armed with the Garmin Forerunner 405. Knowing my love for all things geek and tech, I’m super stoked.

Plus, if you haven’t figured it out, I’m trying to win a weight-loss contest

Right now, I’m looking at running the Run the Rock Half-Marathon in Dallas (December 13), the Vegas Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon (December 6), the Austin 3M Half Marathon (January 24) and the Austin Half-Marathon (February 14).

I feel like I MUST run the Dallas Half this year (because it was the first one I ever ran), plus I really want to PR it. I think running two half’s a week apart from each other is also a little dumb, so I may have to axe the Vegas Half

If you’re interested in running your first half marathon, I really recommend it. I definitely lost inches last year (but then started eating too much and gained weight… so be careful with that) and the sense of accomplishment you get from it is incredible. Last year, my best time was around a 2:42 and I’m looking to get that number down to a 2:20. I’m not a fast runner by any means, so I’m just happy to finish, but I’d like to finish a little quicker this go around!

If this is the very first half that you’re considering, a few pointers: join a running group like Rogue Running. I used them last year, and the advice, motivation and basic runner’s common sense I gained from that was incredibly valuable. The only reason I’m not using them again is I need to save some money this fall. If you can’t afford to run with a group, find a friend to run with at least. Ashley and I did it together last year, and there is some kind of odd bond between us now, which comes from wanting to die together at the 8, 10, 12 and 14 mile markers of long run days. Finally, try and read as much stuff as you can about running — I love Runner’s World and their August issue has both a half-marathon and full marathon running guide to check out.

And I swear to God, if any of you come cheer me on in Dallas, Austin or Vegas and I hear “Run, Jenni, Run” I will beat you up silly.