Making the Commitment to Run a Marathon

Today I committed to run the Santa Barbara Marathon in 7 months.  I had been procrastinating the decision for a few months but something finally clicked when I looked the course.  Not too hilly, finishes at the ocean, in December (cool temps no doubt) and in Santa Barbara, one of my favorite places. 

Making a commitment is pretty much the first step one needs to take in running a marathon (other than perhaps getting a physical exam to make sure your doctor is cool with it...not that I've ever done that :>).

Even as an experienced runner with over 15 years of regular running under my belt, the commitment to training for and running a marathon is not to be taken lightly.  It takes a lot of focus, perseverence, determination and consistency to train for a marathon...or at least to train for it the right way.

The fact that I already have weekly base mileage of 30 to 35 miles per week under my belt makes it easier for me to start ramping up the training.  Some of you may be complete beginners at running and are looking to run your first marathon.  After you commit, your main goal should be to get out there and start gradually building up some mileage.  We will get into that later.

Make sure to commit or you may just quit!