The Countdown

Seventeen days stand between me and 13.1. Que the sweating and my skeptical face (exhibited below).
half marathon training plan | @jessicazimlichAt the risk of sounding overly confident, I don’t have any doubt in my mind that I won’t be able to finish. This will be my fourth half marathon and even if I have to army crawl across that finish line, it’s going to happen. The problem lies in the fact that I don’t just want to finish, I want to do my best. I set out to break 2 hours (I’ve got 11 minutes to shave off my PR!) at the beginning of the new year and that number scares me even more now than it did then.

I came across this quote on Clementine Daily from Meryl Streep that read, “Put blinders on to those things that conspire to hold you back, especially the ones in your own head.” Sometimes I’m my own worst enemy. I’ve been getting in my own way in more ways than one these past few weeks and I’m ready to push the self-doubt that has crept in to the side.

I tackled my 8-miler on Monday after skipping it on Saturday (do as I say, not as I do) and aside from a tinge of knee pain, it went alright. I’ve got three more long runs and a slew of 5-milers on the books over the course of the next two weeks. So if you need me, I’ll just be over here pushing myself to pick up the pace!

ARE ANY OF YOU TRAINING FOR A RACE? OR HAVE YOU TRIED ANY NEW WORKOUT ROUTINES LATELY?

p/s I’m 9,580 snaps deep over on Snapchat, but I’ve just now started using it as more than a means to send my best friends awkward couch selfies – which makes it way more fun! Find me @jessicazimlich for a behind the scenes look and more often than not, scenes from my runs.

SHOP THIS LOOK:

Leave a Comment

37 Comments

  1. The Adored Life wrote:

    Well you shouldn’t have any doubts about finishing! It’s so awesome that something so big is like a routine thing for you!
    http://Www.theadoredlife.com

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Is it bad that when I saw doubts I read it as donuts? #signsIhaveaproblem. Thanks girl 🙂

      Posted 3.25.15 Reply
  2. Ashley T wrote:

    Girl you got this! Good luck!!

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Woo, thank you so much!

      Posted 3.25.15 Reply
  3. Kari wrote:

    You’re going to do awesome!! You rock!!!

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      🙂 yayyy! Thanks girlfriend!

      Posted 3.25.15 Reply
  4. Elle wrote:

    I dropped the ball on getting signed up for the 5k and now its full 🙁 It sounds like you’re well prepared and are gonna rock this one. Here’s hoping for the perfect (semi-cool) race weather for ya!

    Elle

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Oh no! Thank you 🙂 I hope it’s not as humid as last year!

      Posted 3.25.15 Reply
  5. Natalie wrote:

    You go, girl! I wish I were more motivated to run. I “ran” the Disney half marathon in college and I couldn’t walk for days.

    http://www.cincin-natalie.com

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Haha, well….I have the same experience after my long runs, but it’s so rewarding 🙂

      Posted 3.25.15 Reply
  6. Gentry wrote:

    I recently started running (I’ve always been a group fitness girl) and although it’s tough there is nothing more rewarding that pushing yourself to get better! You are inspiring me to keep at it!!

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      That’s awesome! Running changes my body in ways I can’t explain. I definitely noticed a different last year when I wasn’t training or running at all and it feels good to be back. Thanks so much, Gentry. Same goes for you!

      Posted 3.25.15 Reply
  7. Helena wrote:

    Wauw, you have no idea how inspiring this was. You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself though, sounds like you’re doing fantastic! The best of luck to you <3

    simply-mode.com

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      I’m so glad you found it to be inspiring! Thanks for the luck!

      Posted 3.25.15 Reply
  8. andrea garcia wrote:

    This is great! You look great

    http://sbr-fashion-fashion.blogspot.com/

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
  9. You’ve got this girl! Plus, those shoes are amaze! woop woop!

    Peachtree Roadies

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Thank you so much! Having cute shoes to lace up gets me extra motivated. Not to mention the fact that I had worn a hole in the toes of my old ones lol. Oops. Have a great weekend!

      Posted 3.27.15 Reply
  10. Rachelle wrote:

    I love working and I’ve been keeping up with it, but I hate running lol. I recently started running again and it’s going well so far, thanks for the inspo. You are awesome.

    xo
    PinkSole

    Posted 3.25.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Yay – I bet your weather is perfect for running in. It’s cold here again today! YOU are awesome 🙂

      Posted 3.27.15 Reply
  11. Caitlin wrote:

    good for you! one of these days i’m going to get the courage to run one. xx

    Posted 3.26.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      As Nike says, Just Do It 😉 It feels amazing!

      Posted 3.27.15 Reply
  12. Laura S. wrote:

    You’ve got this girl! You’ll do great, I know!
    xo, Laura
    laurasbestlife.com

    Posted 3.26.15 Reply
  13. Lorraine wrote:

    Hello! 🙂 New reader here!

    I just ran my 2nd half this past Sunday and beat my 1st time by 22 minutes! I found that incorporating speed workouts, running 5 days a week and ‘tempo” runs really helped me. Of course the fact that I trained consistently was most important (my first half I barely trained and ran only 2x a week! Amazing I even finished!)

    Anyways, you’re much faster than me and I admire that. Good luck. It will be tough, but you’ll do great!

    Posted 3.26.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Hi! I’m so happy you’re here, Lorraine.

      That’s amazing!! I haven’t been doing any tempo runs, but I wonder if incorporating them at this point in the game would help at all. I’ll give it a go! Thank you for the tip 🙂 There are sooo many people who are faster than me, but I’ve learned to just focus on myself and what my body can handle (that doesn’t mean I’m not pushing myself) but I’ll never run a consistent 8 minute mile. It’s just not going to happen! I’m sure you killed it!

      Don’t be a stranger 😉

      Posted 3.27.15 Reply
  14. Good luck!!! I know you’ll do great!
    xo,
    Angela

    Posted 3.26.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Thanks lady!! Have a great weekend 🙂

      Posted 3.27.15 Reply
  15. the fact that you’re running 8mi for training is amazing…. i have an 8k to tackle at the end of April and need to START running this week! good luck 🙂

    Posted 3.27.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Oy. It nearly did me in 😉 Yay! Good luck getting back into the groove, Kate!

      Posted 3.30.15 Reply
  16. My boyfriend wants me to do a 10K this summer. That’s nothing to your goal – I’m feeling a little more confident. Good luck to you!

    Posted 3.30.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      You can do it! My number one tip is to start somewhere, even if it’s just one mile. If you would have asked me a few years ago if I would run 13 miles in a row, I would have laughed out loud!

      Posted 3.31.15 Reply
  17. Jen wrote:

    Good luck!! I keep trying to get into running and I just can’t haha. I’ve been using class pass to explore different workouts around Chicago and I discovered Flywheel and Flybarre which is my current favorite.

    xo, Jen
    http://www.comfortably-chic.com

    Posted 3.31.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Thank you! I definitely go through spurts where I love running and other times where I secretly despise it, but one this always remains the same…I feel amazing afterward. I think the trick is finding what works for you 🙂

      Posted 3.31.15 Reply
  18. Oh my gosh, you are going to kill this, girl!!

    Posted 3.31.15 Reply
  19. Tomissa Porath wrote:

    You’re gonna kick butt!!

    Posted 3.31.15 Reply
    • Jessica wrote:

      Thanks lady! The pre-race jitters have already set in haha not sure if this is good or bad 😉

      Posted 3.31.15 Reply
  20. Alyssa Loring wrote:

    Congrats on even attempting a 13.1! I’ve only done a couple of 5Ks but hope to work my way up!
    Alyssa
    http://www.feathersandstripes.com

    Posted 4.10.15 Reply