How Many Races Is Too Many Races?
The origin story of my audacious goal of a half marathon a month for 12 consecutive months
This year I set the most audacious goal I’ve ever set for myself and now that we are halfway through the year I am ready to talk about it.
How We Got Here
In December 2025 I had a crazy idea. After roughly 18 months of minimal movement I was going to start running again. And to motivate myself and keep myself on track I was going to sign up to complete my first half marathon… 10 weeks into the new year.
Less than 36 hours after finishing my first half marathon I signed up for my second… one month later. And 2 weeks after that decision I signed up for 5 more races, including my first full marathon 6 months later.
By this point I had put in around 365 miles since January 1 so I was clearly committed to running. But the few people I shared this with thought my race schedule was a little ambitious.
So naturally, I set my sights on an even loftier goal: 12 half marathons in the next 12 months.
Not eager to hear the naysayers I kept this little plan to myself and began to research and plan races.
The Reality of Coordinating
I am not a 22 year old with minimal obligations nor am I an independently wealthy retiree. I have a full time job. My husband has a primary job that has a rotating schedule as well as a second job that pulls him away for atleast a weekend each month. Plus we have 2 small children and unfortunately not a huge circle that is willing or able to drop everything to care for them. Oh, and we live in rural Montana. The logistics of it nearly killed me but I was determined.
As I began to plan my roster I considered a few things:
Schedules - my job, my husband’s schedule, school events, sports, social obligations, and childcare definitely left my head spinning at times.
Cost - race registration can get pricey but there are other factors to consider as well such as gas, other transportation (like flights and rental cars), lodging, and food.
Location - living in rural Montana has its perks… and abundance of close races is not one of them. I found a lot of opportunities around the state but 3+ hours of travel is pretty standard for consideration. Also: might as well take advantage of opportunities to see good friends and check out cool experiences while I’m at it.
Cool factor - if I’m going to pay to run, I’d like to find some cool opportunities. Destination runs aren’t always in my budget but I sought out views and challenges to keep myself interested throughout the year
Final Race Registration Count:
33 Events with 19 half marathons, 2 full marathons (and a smattering of other events)
You can read about the races I chose and why I chose them here:
12 in 12 Roster
When I decided to set my audacious goal of running 12 half marathons in 12 months, I knew it would require almost as much focus and planning as it would dedication. You can read more about how I found myself in this endeavor here:
The Journey So Far…
So far, I have completed 10 events; this includes five half marathons, two 5Ks, one 5 miler, and three family “fun” runs.
In training, I have logged 842.5 miles of running this year and have spent a shocking amount of money on race registrations. I also now own 4 pairs of running shoes, have discovered the joy of open ear headphones, and 20% of my diet is comprised of Gu gels.
These last four months have been some of the most rewarding and challenging in recent years. They have definitely been the most dedicated I have been to myself and some people would even say the most selfish. But I’ve never felt more secure and confident and stable.