Found it!

I ran across the novice half-marathon training schedule I had printed out in September. And then, because I can't let well enough alone and because Google is my friend, I found another, longer training schedule and printed it out as well.

The second version, once you click on the "print this schedule out" link, gives you a lovely, formatted schedule where you can check off each item once you've done it. That appeals to my compulsive side.

There are some major differences in each program, however, and I'm going to have to evaluate and play around with them to get something that works for me.

The first one, which we'll call Hal's [because that's whose it is], has a rest day, a 'stretch and strengthen' day and another day with strength training and a run. The second plan, which we'll call Oprah's [because it's on her website], has no rest days – it's Oprah's, go figure, does she ever rest? – and no strength- or flexibility-training, but has you doing 45 crunches every day. Hal's plan is 12 weeks; Oprah's is 18.

The Shrinking Knitter's will be a combination of both. I like 18 weeks instead of 12. The half-marathon I'm considering running is 20 weeks from today, so I could start the 18-week plan in early January and end it on race day. I like having a built-in rest day, but Hal rests on Friday, which is usually [not yesterday] one of my better exercise days.

I like that Hal has strength and stretch days, but I also like the consistency of running every day. I'll have to think more about all this and come up with something reasonable, effective and motivating.

I'm not even sure I'm going to do the race. Mr. Shrinking Knitter is not keen on the idea, having had both a friend and a patient suffer heart attacks the day after running marathons. Telling him this is only a half doesn't do much good; he's more aware of my age and limitations than I am. Telling him the oldest woman in the New York City marathon was 78 doesn't do much good, either. I think he's afraid if something happened to me he'd have to learn how to make coffee. Heh.

My IBS has been an 'issue' this week, so exercise has been almost nil. Yesterday I felt pretty good and got on the treadmill, ready to run three miles. After only one, I was wiped out! I gave myself credit for doing something and quit. Usually I would force myself to keep on keepin' on, simply because I'd changed into running clothes and worked up a sweat and why settle for only 15 minutes? [I sometimes can't quite believe that I used to run a nine-minute mile.] But after four slow laps I was done.

Food was almost perfect yesterday. Slightly under my calorie target, no sugar, only 15% fat. But only 20% protein. It was a carb-heavy day, but the carbs were clementines, black beans and a whole-wheat bagel.

At the end of the day, like yesterday's quote, I was supremely satisfied. I hope you were, too.

Haven't updated the knitting progress in a while. I think maybe tomorrow there will be a photo of a finished cardigan! That would truly be supremely satisfying.