I am no longer training for the NYC Marathon. Last night, when I was getting ready to put myself to bed for my 18-miler, I had a thought: What if I don't run the marathon this year? As I thought about it more, I kept getting happier. Calmer. My heart just isn't in it this year. I don't want to have to schedule running into my life. I want to do what I want, when I want. If I want to run, I'll run. If I don't, I won't. Simple as that.

Also, my next marathon needs to be a positive experience; I need to feel good about it. Considering the way I've been training so far this year, if I keep training and run the marathon on November 6th, I will not feel good about it. I have not run more than 5-6 miles during the week this entire time. That means I've barely hit 20 miles a week. That's not a recipe for a good marathon experience for me. I've completed two marathons. I'm not looking to just scrape by on another one. The next time I run a marathon, I need to be more committed than I am now.

Bring on the half marathons. The 10k's. The 5k's. The trail running. The P90X. The 15-mile roundtrip bike rides to/from work.

This morning, I slept as long as I felt like. Then Greg and I ran with Frankie to the farmer's market in Prospect Park. Then we walked back. That's how I want to spend my Saturday mornings if I feel like it.

I'll defer my marathon bib to next year. Maybe I'll be in the mood to run in then. But for now, I'm a much happier Kristin.