From Gainesvile to Gainesville, by way of Key West

It's (semi-)official: I'm going to run the Gainesville Marathon next February. "But you can't even run a mile," you say. True, but I will be able to by then, plus about 25.2 more miles on top of that. Why would I decide to go from zero to 26.2 in less than a year? A few reasons: My husband, my sister-in-law, my sister, and my future kids.

1) My husband: He's just completed his 2nd marathon, and he was thisclose to qualifying for the Boston Marathon without even having tried to! He refuses to believe he's an elite runner, but when you run a 3:20 marathon after having the flu, you're an elite frickin' runner. Anyway, I have this dream that we'll both qualify for Boston someday, and I want to run it together. I guess I'd better start training.

2) My sister-in-law: She just started running in August, and she's running 3-4 miles, 6 days a week. On top of that, she's lost 30-something pounds doing it! I'm not sure where she found that much weight to lose, but I guess she has literally run her buns off. She's doing it to set an example for her 2 daughters, to destress, and to be healthier. I say, "go, girl! I'm right behind you!"

3) My sister: She's not a runner. She is, however, really fit, and she's interested in becoming a runner. There's a half-marathon in Key West before the Gainesville Marathon, and I threw out the idea to her and my sis-in-law of all of us running it together. Both my sister and I will be training as beginning runners for now, but I know we've got plenty of time to work up to 13.1 miles before January 25, 2009. We're both scared but excited by the prospect of doing this, but I'm excited that it'll give all three of us a way to connect more.

4) My future kids: I've decided that I want to run a marathon so that I can make sure I am fit enough to have a healthy pregnancy. Right now, I'm on the cusp of being seriously at risk for gestational diabetes, hypertension, preeclampsia, etc. To be ready for babies, I want to lose about 20-25 pounds. This isn't about fitting into a bikini anymore, this is about taking care of my kids and having the health and energy to be a good mother to them. I plan on having a lot of kids, so I'd better be able to run around after them!

So, here's the plan:
1) Follow a beginner running program for the next two months to get up to 3 miles, 3 times a week.
2) Move to FL.
3) Celebrate my successful adjustment to running in the unbearable heat by running the 30th annual Melon Run 3-mile run in Gainesville this July.
4) Train, train, train.
5) Run the Half Shell Half-Marathon in Key West in January 2009 with my sister and sister-in-law.
6) Train, train.
7) Run the Gainesville Five Points of Life Marathon in February 2009.
8) Rest.
9) Run some more.
10) Have babies.
11) Keep running.

I think that about does it. Wish me luck.