Kelly Trepp, Author

Photo Courtesy of Rock 'n' Roll USA on Facebook As most of you know, I completed my first half marathon this past weekend. I took my place alongside 30,000 runners to race through the streets of DC in the inaugural Rock 'n' Roll USA 1/2 Marathon & Marathon . I cannot describe the emotions I felt after crossing the finish line sufficiently for you to understand unless you have done it before yourself. There were waves of accomplishment, regret, relief, disappointment, satisfaction, and a strong urge to do it all over again. Let us begin at the beginning... My sister woke up at the crack of dawn to meet us at the hotel in Largo, just outside DC. We chose Largo for three reasons: 1) cheaper than staying in the city; 2) only a few stops away from the Stadium/Armory stop on the Blue Line of the Metro where the race began and finished; 3) less people would be going our way on the Metro after the race. That third reason was pretty key in planning our escape after th...

Hello bloggers, long time no see. I have neglected you, and I apologize. There have been some family health issues and with the race coming up, I have been filling all of my time with running ad family. My taper week begins now! And my first half-marathon is five days away. The weather is projected to be balmy, which is against every thing that I had planned for, but I am really looking forward to seeing the sun. I set out for my long run on Sunday, rather than Saturday, because the weather was closer to the prediction for the day of the half. I wore my Lululemon Run Inspired Crops , Under Armour Cold Gear Fitted Mock Neck Long Sleeve Shirt , my newly acquired SPI belt , and my CamelBak . I decided that the Mock Neck is not going to cut it on race day. As much as I LOVE that thing, it is not made for a 70 degree day. Hence the **Cold Gear** label . I think I will opt for my Under Armour tee shirt instead. 1 mile in, I had to pee. Apparently, using the restroom three times befor...

I was able to get back on track with my training last week, after taking a week off due to a cold and sinus problem. And it wasn't a moment too soon. There are less than three weeks until the DC Rock n Roll Half Marathon . This weekend, I decided to take it easy and hang back with my hubby for the majority of the long run. I have decided I enjoy it much more when I run in tandem with the hubster and my puppy. It was also a beautiful day. The air was crisp but the sun was warm. The brackish water of the bay smelled so fresh. The tide was out and the waves were crashing on the rocks of the jetties. In short, it was a perfect day for a run. But I digress. Here are the splits for my 11 mile run: Mile Time Best Pace 1 10:22 8:48 2 10:20 9:05 3 10:16 9:10 4 10:23 9:13 5 11:06 9:14 6 11:30 9:25 7 13:49 8:56 8 9:04 7:52 9 9:03 8:21 10 9:27 8:38 11 9:42 8:18 As you can see, we sort of fell off pace towards the middle of t...

To those of you who have stuck with me through blog post frenzies and lulls, I would like to thank you sincerely from the bottom of my heart. I love having an outlet for writing and to have an audience, even if there's only two of you, makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. I am sending you virtual hugs through your computer right now. Go on, reach out and hold it. While I was away, I was not just resting on my laurels. I did complete my 8 mile long run two weekends ago, as scheduled. It was an amazing experience. My hubby came along with me, but felt pain in his shins around 2.75 miles. He urged me to go on without him while he limped along behind. I had let him set the pace for the first two miles, but when I left him, I increased my pace drastically. I set off for the third and fourth miles at a comfortable pace, but as I turned around to head back to the truck, I felt an overwhelming urge to catch up with the hubster and finish my miles with him. As a result, I was chasing hi...

Irony is ever present in my life. Earlier this month I posted about spreading the Treadmill Love . Well, this weekend, the treadmill and I got a whole lot closer. Typically, I reserve my treadmill for my shorter, weekday runs. I run three to four miles, three days a week on the treadmill while watching programs on my DVR. Alternatively, I normally choose to run my long runs outside on the weekends. This weekend, however, I did my seven mile run on the treadmill. **gasp** I know it sounds dreadful, and I will not lie to you, it was not the best run I have ever had. But the important thing is I completed the seven miles. And hubby was able to hang with me the whole run this time, albeit on the couch. He did hop up to hand me a banana around mile four and to write down my splits for me since I could not track them on my Garmin 305. Mile Time Best Pace 1 10:15 N/A 2 10:11 N/A 3 10:09 N/A 4 10:00 N/A 5 9:53 N/A 6 9:49 N/A 7 9:58 N/A The tot...

A year ago, I was preparing for the holiday season weighing about 15 pounds more than I currently do. I was proud of myself for having lost 15 pounds up to that point, but I knew I had a lot further to go. I did not have any set goals other than to look great on my wedding day. I modified my goals as we got closer to the big day. I focused on being fit, rather than being skinny, incorporating weight training into my everyday work outs. I decided that weight was just a number on the scale, and that I should measure my success by how I feel. Shortly after the wedding, I made a commitment to myself to push further than what I thought I was capable of and to complete a half marathon. The thought of completing a half marathon was daunting, but if I did not try, I would never know. With a few 5ks under my belt, I signed up for a half marathon and created a training schedule . With training for a half marathon, as with most things in life, you have to be prepared to adapt. For example,...

Over the weekend, I received an email reminder from the Rock n Roll Half Marathon that I have 19 weeks until my first half marathon. 19 weeks may seem like a long time, but since they have put a countdown on it, I am feeling the pressure! So today I have created a training calendar to keep myself and my running mate on track. Feel free to take advantage of this calendar and use it yourself, I made it public for you. How sweet of me?! This calendar is a modification of the 12 week Novice 2 schedule for half marathon training created by Hal Higdon . Since I have an extra seven weeks, I added in a few more long runs and some cross training days. I believe cross training was a big help in building my endurance when training for my 5-Ks. I will be using Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred dvd, more likely than not. It is a n ass butt kicker! You'll notice that towards the end of the training period, a 5-K race and a 10-K race are involved. We are on the lookout for races on ...

Today marks a quarter century since my birth. Saying it like that makes me feel kind of... old? But then I remember I have so much life left ahead of me, and my journey has only just begun! I like to think of Friday's as "Temptation Friday," because there's always something just before the weekend that you're either a) really looking forward to, b) can't wait to avoid, c) have to do right now! These can be good temptations, or they can be devilish unwise temptations. Today's temptation is a good one for me. I'm working from home and I'm fighting the temptation to throw my work to the wind and put my feet on the pavement. As of today, I am officially considering myself in training for the Rock n' Roll Half Marathon at our Nation's capital. As I'm making it official, a run at lunch with the pooch can't hurt productivity too badly can it? My second temptation is to begin a craft project that I have been dying to get to. I purc...