Let the Training Begin!

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Not all of the photos were serious!

Lori Runs Boston Gets a Face Lift

For those of you who have visit my blog before, you're surely noticing that I've given this page a little makeover! You see, I'm a pretty lucky gal for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is my totally amazing, talented boyfriend Michael Basu. Mike is a professional photographer and gave me the awesome opportunity to do a photo shoot at his studio for my blog.  I've never done anything like that before and felt kind of silly, but holy cow the pictures came out great! This may be the closest I ever come to feeling like a Runner's World cover model!  Mike will be donating a portrait session at my upcoming fundraiser (date TBD) so if you've ever wanted to pose for your own imaginary ESPN Magazine cover, that could be your chance!

Gearing Up for Yulefest

On Sunday, December 14, I will be running the Yulefest 5k (the last of the 2014 Cambridge 5k series) as a member of the Slumbrew Happy Soles.  Slumbrew just opened American Fresh, a really cool tap room in Somerville's Assembly Row and they'll be doing group runs from this space once a month, which I am so excited about! The first run was the Sunday after Thanksgiving, but in anticipation of Yulefest, we had a very special pre-run run on December 7.  A small but spirited crew gathered for a chilly 5k run around the Mystic River - including one of my best friends, Heather (front left)! Heather is a lifestyle blogger, so be sure to check her out at Create H!

I'm looking forward to running Yulefest with another great friend, Sarah so stay tuned for a post-race-post!

Getting Down to Business

Seriously. This is gross.

So, this is the week it all begins! Bring on the marathon training! I am, more or less, using the Hal Higdon Novice 2 training plan, which looked really achievable to me. It was laid out similarly to how I trained for my half marathon on my own, so I guess I did an ok job!

Of course, on my first official training day Boston sees record breaking rain.  Seriously, the previous record for rainfall was in 1952 - thanks news weather man! I was able to learn this fun fact because on my first official day of training I had to run on the treadmill. Blarg!  Not only is the treadmill boring, but OMG HOW IS IT SO HOT IN THE GYM. Seriously, I know you're supposed to get your sweat on, but this is insane.  It's December.

Day 1 of Training - 4 miles 

5 Months of training in THIS!?!
What did I get myself into?

I suppose it's fitting as I am quickly realizing that the hardest part about training is going to be motivating myself in the cold and the dark.  I mean, intellectually I knew that was going to be a challenge all along, but now that the weather is getting colder I REALLY feel myself wanting to go home, throw on some pajamas and be the laziest person alive.

To combat this problem head on, I am actively looking for a facility with an indoor track.  That way, I can still have the movement of running with the perks of not getting hypothermia once the deep winter really sets in.

I'm also struggling with figuring out how to dress myself properly for winter running.  I got a few pairs of good thermal, sweat wicking tights (my poor, poor bank account) and a couple more pullovers, but I have yet to pull the trigger on the wool socks.  Level with me people, do I really need to spend $16 on a pair of socks? Is there anywhere I can find them cheaper? Obviously, I don't want to nickle and dime myself on socks - it's pretty imperative to keep your feet warm in the freezing cold, but $16 a pair ADDS UP FAST.  Any tips you could provide would be very much appreciated.

Tomorrow - 5 miles.  Hopefully, weather permits some outdoor running!