My 2017 Goal Race

May 9, 2017

I have declared 2017 my year of rebirth and rebuilding. My goals are not about running my fastest or hurrying the process to find my fiercest self, but rather regaining my strength and helping my body find its way back to what it considers to be normal after pregnancy and child birth. It’s the year of the comeback, or more accurately, the start of the comeback.

As I strive to slowly re-build my running base (which has been even slower than I anticipated), I want to run a half marathon as a fitness test this fall to assess where I’m at as I think about my running goals for 2018 and a true running comeback.

I’m excited to announce that I’ve finally selected my race!

Seacoast Half Marathon on runladylike.com
A photo from the 2016 Seacoast Half Marathon courtesy of http://seacoasthalfmarathon.com/2016-race-photos/

I will be running the Seacoast Half Marathon in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on November 12. I’ve selected this race for several key reasons:

  • The weather is consistently cool, boasting temperatures in which I run my best (40s F).
  • The course is mostly flat, promising faster times that align with my race preferences.
  • A handful of my close friends are running this race, which will allow for a special reunion with some of the most amazing runners I know and love.

My goal is to run this as a fitness test, preferably running to as close to 1:40 as possible.

I will be running a 5K next month on June 3 (Best Damn Leftover 5K run by my good friend Discombobulated Running and her boyfriend) as a fitness assessment after 10 weeks of base building to help me set paces for when I’m ready to run pace-based workouts again. I’m still running extremely slow and easy for me, and I plan to continue doing so until I’m running 20 miles per week. I’m currently running three times per week for a total of 12 miles per week. My longest run so far has been 5 miles with one walk break. I’ve been doing a lot of cross training, and I plan to increase my weekly mileage to 15 miles per week by the end of May.

I will likely run another 5K in the September/October time frame to reassess my current fitness level and adjust training paces as appropriate.

I will share my training journey with you as I continue to balance running as a full-time working mom. I just got approval from my doctor today to run with Baby rUnladylike in my running stroller, so that will be my next adventure! Stay tuned!

What is your goal race for 2017? If you’ve ever run the Seacoast Half Marathon in New Hampshire, tell me about your experience!

Comments

Laura @ This Runner's Recipes

Yayy!! So excited for you, Jes! You have such a solid plan and picked a good race, I know you are going to have a strong comeback. I can’t wait to follow your training and see what you accomplish! Thank you for being inspiring, as you always are. xoxo

Amanda

How exciting! I have not run that one but have heard good things! (My husband actually ran it last year.) I hope you know, any NH race that says “flat” is usually not and will probably have a few rolling hills. 😉 Though I am sure you have looked at the course elevation.

Portsmouth is such a fun spot and has tons to do!

rUnladylike

Come run it with us! Sarah (Run Far Girl) is doing it too! I gathered that it is a little rolling although my NH friends assure me it is flat. When I was in ATL I’m sure I would think it is flat too but now that I’m in FL I’ll need to run some bridges to build back up my hill strength. Thanks for all your kind words and motivation! I really appreciate you! xo

Shirin

Yay! So exciting! I’m really looking forward to seeing your posts on post-partum running.

rUnladylike

Thank you so much Shirin! So grateful for your support and thanks for reading! xo

rUnladylike

I was hoping you’d say that!!! 🙂

Kristen

Yea for jogging stroller time!

Natalie

Jes, this is so exciting! I love the way you have been easing your body back into running – so smart. It will so be fun to run a goal race with Sarah and friends!! xoxo

Rachel

Sounds like you have a good structured plan! I’m just getting started in running myself and will be doing a 10k at the end of this month and hoping to be fit enough for my first half marathon in Feb ’18 🙂

Coffee & Avocados

Lora @ Crazy Running Girl

Woohoo! So excited for you, sounds like an awesome race with perfect race conditions!

angela @ happy fit mama

Yay! You picked a fantastic race. It’s definitely one of my fav 1/2’s on the seacoast. I haven’t run it in a few years but now I think I need to do it this year. The only hill on the course is at the end which is so very cruel but totally doable. Maybe it’ll be my comeback race too? Lol!

rUnladylike

100,000 yeses to this!!! Excited to see you and hopefully mount a comeback together!!! Thinking about you! xo