Day 75

Squeezed in a 2 mile run today. with finals coming up, daniel is on overload right now. i was happy just to get out there! hopefully things will slow down after classes end!!

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Day 45-74

YES we are still here & running!!! Life has just REALLY picked up and so blogging has been put on the back burner. SORRY for those who are following. I hope to get back into blogging about our journey. Running is on the game plan for tomorrow! Today was our day of rest! :)

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Day 44

the remnant from our run today...

A milestone today for us...DOUBLE DIGITS (so in our previous training 2 1/2 years ago we actually got up to 11 miles in training so we have done it before but it has been a while)!! What a perfect day for a run. The weather & the way we felt was right on. Definitely perfect for marathon day!

10 miles in 1:32:48 which is a 9:16 pace!

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Day 43

resting up for a 10 miler tomorrow! whoo hoo!
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Day 42

warm up-ran 1 mile in 7:36.

did weight training

ended with these...killers!

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Day 41

Today we worked on our speed. 3.11 miles in 25:53 which is a 8:19 pace. it's not our best time like here but it is pretty dang close! before we even hit 1 mile we both were feeling...well...like poop. BUT some how we regained our strength to finish strong. that first mile were were pushing a 7:50ish pace.

now on to the sad news...you see we hadn't signed up for the chicago marathon just yet because (according to last year) it didn't fill up till the end of April, and well we are at the end of MARCH people! So to play it safe, daniel went on the internet tuesday night to sign us up so that we would have PLENTY of time to get in. To his surprise IT HAD FILLED UP JUST 4 HOURS BEFORE THAT! I kid you not! I mean REALLY?!?! So after crying like babies and throwing tantrums on the floor (haha j/k...or am i?) we picked ourselves back up, regained composure and began searching for another one to run. Even though this one was our dream to run in...apparently we weren't suppose to run in it! more details to come about what we will be running in. We are still training and preparing ourselves!..just a bit bummed. Here's to a new adventure!

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Day 40

no running. just rest :)

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Day 39

we are taking a day of rest (mondays is always our rest day due to school) but i (magen) am glad we are resting, because this cold i thought i was over...well i guess i'm not :( coughing all morning with congestion in my chest! going to rest up for more training later in the week!

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Day 38

back on the pavement! we have been eye-balling this park for a good while (we even stopped at it a while back when we were visiting looking for a place to live). today we knew we had plenty of time to venture out...so we did. the park (or preserve) was AMAZING! it had a trail that was paved (you know for the stroller and all) that was about 9 miles! we didn't have to "repeat" running if you know what i mean. it was a bit windy today but we still did it. How much you ask?

9.01 miles at a 9:19 pace!!!

we actually got a bit lost after we had run 9 miles and after finding our way back to our car it was a total of about 11 miles (running off and on for the last 2 miles). it was a great change in scenery and somewhere we will definitely visit often :)

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Day 37

it snowed & was waaay cold that we decided to stay in our warm, cozy condo :)

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Day 36

busy day...we couldn't seem to fit in running so yet another day of rest.

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Day 35

a day of rest...and it felt good!

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Day 34

8 miles at a 9:26 pace! beautiful weather today...both wore shorts!! :)

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Day 33

You ready for this!!! 3.11 miles in 25:36...thats a 8:14 pace! Best we have done so far in this training. The weather was PERFECT! I (mae) wasn't even sure how we would do since i had been under the weather, but apparently i am FULLY recovered! We wanted to work on our pace today & then do a couple of loooonng runs towards the end of the week. What a great way to start our running for the week!!!

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Day 32

weight training.
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Day 31

went into downtown and did SOOOOO much walking! that was our exercise for the day..haha :)
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Day 30

much needed day of rest. felt a little under the weather!
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Day 29

7 miles at a 9:24 pace. honestly it was a hard run today. neither of us were feeling great but we did it any way and felt so glad after! the wind was pretty powerful and seemed to slow us down a bit. at one point i (magen) wanted to just quit, but persevered and kept telling myself over and over "you can do this. you can do this". it must have help.


we plan to register for the chicago marathon within a week. the spots fill up so fast. last year they said each spot was filled by april and the race isn't till october so we better get movin!!

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Day 28

took a day off to rest & rejuvenate.
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Day 27

6.12 miles in 56.07. that's a 9:09 pace. we are getting there! it seems we face many challenges while running here...snow, ice, cold and today rain! BUT we're not going to let that stop us :)

yesterday we splurged (which we don't do much of around here because well...daniel is in school) and went to REI & got a weather cover for our BOB. IT IS AMAZING!! not only does it block rain, but wind, the cold and such! it was totally worth every penny! Eli seems like a happy boy to be able to look out while we are running (although he did fall asleep :)). Such a great run today. Looking forward to many many more!!



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Day 26

day of rest needed.

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Day 25

6 miles! 9:15 pace. GREAT weather to run in!!

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Day 24

intervals. they were hard.

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Day 23

the best running weather yet! daniel even wore shorts :) not me though...a little bit chilly for that! 37 degrees & the sun was shining. we had a great run & are excited about our progress. we ran 5.25 miles in 49:01. not too shabby if i do say so myself.

*side note-I (magen) am still not quiet where i want to be running...you see i ran my WHOLE pregnancy if not ever day then every other day. at 35 weeks pregnant i was running close to 3 miles at 8:40ish pace...and i was PREGNANT. BIG PREGNANT that is! so we are still working on our pace & distance.

good day. good run :)

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i was going to take a picture of the watch but it got messed up. maybe next time!

Day 22

we rested.

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Day 21

brrrrrrrrr! we are ready for some warmer weather so we can shed some of this gear!! we ran 5 miles today. both of us were sore from yesterday's run but so glad we did it!

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Day 20

30ish degrees outside & partially windy. we ran 4.5 miles! I have been meaning to take a picture of our watch after each run but just keep forgetting...until now. i will try to keep up! here it is from our run today:

also, whats my (magen) running attire? an oversized sweatshirt (daniel's :)), running leggings pants things & a great pair of shoes. oh & gloves & a head warmer thing that are not pictured.

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Day 19

monday is one of our days of rest. so we rested from running and did weight training.

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Day 18

intervals. they were hard but oh so good!

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Day 17

4.15 miles & we actually did a lot better than yesterday. It was 34 degrees and really windy. we are ready to shed the gloves, coats, hats, sweat pants & carseat. we are thinking about a month of this left. here is yet another pre-run video. *notice the spit up at the end :) that's our boy!

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Untitled from Daniel Davis on Vimeo.

Day 16

Today we bumped it up to 4 miles.  The extra distance felt really good.  We both felt like we could have pushed it even harder. Check out the pre-run video below.

Day 15

We did weights today, but no running. Resting up for a 4 mile run tomorrow!

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Day 14

Rested from running and weights today.

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Day 13

Today was our best run yet. The runs are getting much easier for the both of us. Not sure if they are getting easier for Eli or not. :) We did 3 miles and think we might do 4 miles on our next run.

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Day 12

We rested from running today, but did do some weights!

Day 11

Today we had a great run! Time is still on its way down. It was about 34 degree which seems pretty warm to us nowadays.  We are still at 3 miles and will probably move up to 4 miles some time this week. We are taking our time to build up so our bodies have plenty of time to get used to it and so we don't get burned out like we have in the past.

  Here is Magen and Eli about to head out. 

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Day 10

35ish degrees. best run yet!  felt good.  best time so far of this training.  ran 3.  weather was much warmer (but don't think south warm...it's the north!)  so you have to remember that we are not only running in MANY layers, gloves, hats, etc BUT we are also pushing a not so light stroller with a chunk in it :)  we are drawing very near to the day we have to register for the race.  even though it is 8 months away...we have read & heard it fills up very quick!
our happy boy! he is such a trooper riding while daddy & mommy run :)

Daniel in action...notice the snow.

here's to a great run tomorrow!  we will be increasing our distance soon.

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Day 9

we yet again rested.  for some reason we were BOTH worn out and just ready to snuggle up on the couch & watch a movie :).  rest is always good when training!
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Day 8

great day for a run!  we are continuing to do 3 quick miles...increasing our pace.
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Day 7

we rested.
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Day 6

Up and at 'em early!  We hit the pavement first thing this morning (well we did have to feed someone :)), but after that we were out the door.  29 degrees but felt much more like 10 due to the wind...ugh!  we were slightly slower than our previous time.  we both agree that the reasoning for this is because it was first thing & we hadn't eaten (like we had on sunday).  BUT our time is definitely getting better and for that we are happy!  Did another quick 3 miles.  We will be increasing it soon.

So to all you runners out there, tell us what is the hardest part of your run!  we were chatting today and both said that we start & end GREAT but it is the middle of our run that seems to get to us...ugh.  BUT we do persevere!  we're curious to hear from you.

okay we leave you with the cutest (well we think) little guy in his warm clothes :)

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Day 5

Our rest day.  Monday's Daniel is in school from 8:00am till 9:00pm.  This will be our usual rest day until his schedule changes.  It's always good to rest!!

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Day 4

27 degrees & very windy...BRRRRR!  We did another swift 3 miles today increasing our pace drastically! We can both tell it is starting to get somewhat easier and enjoyable.  We love to do things together and running has always been something we love to share with one another. ever since eli has arrived, finding time has been tricky but we are determined!!  speaking of our little man...he was so tired from not getting a nap at church this morning that he slept through the whole run which made both daddy & mommy very happy.  we look forward to that day when he can face forward in his jogging stroller for many reasons: 1. we won't have to push the stroller with the carseat=so much extra weight  2.he can face out & be entertained 3. when we do start to do this the weather will be much warmer outside :).  He is big enough now for us to do this, but the fact that the wind is so strong & it is chilly outside, we keep him in his carset all snug as a bug in a rug! okay off to study for school & coupon :)

Day 3

Today was pretty much a rest day for us.  Daniel did some weights, which we are planning on doing about every other day to compliment our running. I (Magen) decided I should take the day off since I was having a little pain in my hip for some reason. We will be back on the road tomorrow. We are planning on doing 3 miles again. Since we have awhile to train, we wanted to take our time building up mileage so that we don't get burned out or injured. See you here tomorrow!

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Day 2

Today we got out early for another 3 miles in the balmy 14 degree weather.  It was both easier and harder.  The harder part was that we were both a little stiff from yesterday BUT the easier part was we weren't quite as out of breath. We are still working on getting the right clothing to stay warm but not to warm for ourselves and for Eli.

To make this more interesting and for some of those who might be considering joining in...here are what we think some of the BEST running shoes.  They make you feel light on your feet AND I kid you not when we got these snazzy kicks...both of us shed some time from our running.

And here is yet another wonderful invention that helps us with our running!  It'll be 3 years this May that we have had this neat contraption and well...it has been worth EVERY penny & MORE!

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Day 1

We have been talking about it for awhile now and have decided to actually do it. Yes, we are going to run a marathon!!  Depending on when God provides our mission support, we are planning on doing the Chicago Marathon on October 10th of this year (but we would be TOTALLY happy if our support came in and we left before then!)

We started back running today.  It has been awhile since either one of us has run consistently.  So, we started with a quick 3 mile in order not to bite off more than we could chew.  It felt really good to get out there, even though it was in the 20's.  There is something about running that...well in the moment it sometimes is difficult and we feel the need to quit but the feeling we get afterwards is always worth it!!

That is all for now, but we will be trying to update daily on our progress so be sure to check back!

Eli's ready for his run today!