I am not a runner: my insecurities and excitement about completing a full marathon

I am in disbelief - I just signed up for a full marathon.  I feel excited, scared, and a little crazy!

Aaron and I completed two mini marathons last year, and I LOVED them.  I am not at all the type of person who would say she loves to run, but the race atmosphere is so much fun, and it feels great to complete the race. 

It's also a lot of fun to see how you change and improve during your training.  A transformation also happens in your attitude: the beginning of training can be tough, but you start to look forward to your workouts and feel excited to beat your prior times.

I am the type of person who LOVES goals and to-do lists.  I constantly need something to work towards to push myself because I crave challenge and new experiences, so doing this marathon is right up my alley!

I have been training for several months already to get myself into shape prior to the REAL workouts, and I promised myself that I wouldn't sign  up for the race or buy myself a new pair of shoes until I really started to look forward to my workouts.

So, last week, I bought myself a new pair of shoes and retired my old, ugly, worn out pair.  I chose the Saucony Kinvarna 2 shoes.  Aren't they beautiful?  They feel great!

I also signed up for my race (tonight!), and while I am SUPER excited, I am a little scared.  Of course, I am afraid of moving beyond my comfort zone and doubling the race length that I've done in the past, but I am also worried about my time.

I am planning to run most of the course, but I am not so competitive yet that I am unwilling to do a little walking.  I am afraid I will feel embarrassed about my time because I am "not a real runner."

Certainly, just finishing is an accomplishment in itself, and I must remind myself of that.  I am going to join a running group like Blue Mile to improve my time (I am very competitive and anticipate that I will push myself harder in a group setting!).