Hello, again...

I promised that I would take a month off after running a 3:36 marathon on December 13, and it also meant a month off from blogging.

And so, the month is up.

First, a review of 2009.  I ran 2,160 miles, which amounts to about 41.5 miles per week. Both are personal bests. I posted at least 240 miles in June, July, and August, and though it didn't equate to a great marathon time in October, I feel like I was so fit that I was able to run my personal best marathon in December, despite cramping from Mile 14 on.

Speaking of marathons, I ran 3 in the 2009 calendar year, but technically, I ran 4 marathons in 365 days if you count the 2008 White Rock Marathon I ran on December 14, 2008, the Cowtown Marathon on February 28, 2009, the Portland Marathon on October 4, 2009, and the White Rock Marathon on December 13, 2009.

Needless to say, I was pretty tired of running come December.

I think I feel much better now and am just now beginning to plan some races/goals for this year.

I've already signed up for two races this year: The 3M Half Marathon in Austin on January 27, and the Texas Independence Relay with a bunch of my Fort Worth friends the first weekend in March.

I also plan on signing up for the Austin Half Marathon on Valentine's Day.

My goals this year:

1) Run two marathons, one in the Spring and the Fall and hope to finally, finally, finally run that 3:20 to qualify for Boston.

2) Run a sub 19-minute 5K. I ran 19:08 on Thanksgiving Day in Fort Worth on a moderately hilly course. My last mile (5:55) was my fastest mile.

3) Run a sub 1:30 half marathon. My PR is 1:36 in January 2009, before I'd ever run more than 200 miles in one month. To run a 1:30, I'd have to average 6:50 min/mile. Cardiovascular-wise, 6:50 is doable. I just don't know if my legs can handle it.