I Did It!!!

I actually did it!  I completed a half marathon!  

About 11 weeks ago (almost exactly), I was at a bachelorette party for a girl at work.  While we were at dinner the other girls I work with started talking about a half marathon they were going to do in October.  It has always been in the back of my mind to try and complete a half marathon, but I am not a distance runner.  I ran track in high school, but the farthest I ran was about 3-4 miles.  Somehow I was talked into doing it that night and training began.  It was fun because there were 8 of us that ended up running it!

Prior to starting training I honestly couldn't run 1 mile without stopping (no exaggeration).  My first 2 miles took me over 25 minutes to complete and I think I walked 2-3 times.  I committed to running 3 times a week which was really tricky to fit in.  I knew that I couldn't take the kids and run very well so I had to wake up and run before Jared left for work.  I typically ran on Tuesdays, Thursdays and a long run on Saturdays.  Thankfully most long runs were completed with one of my good friends.  It made it so much nicer to run and talk then to be alone.

The last month of training I was only able to run a couple of times a week due to schedules getting busier.  It probably would have been beneficial if I had been able to run more toward the end!

I was pretty nervous before the race!  And it was cold out!  I think it was around 40 degrees when the race started.  My friend Annie and I decided to run together as long as we could and I was hoping to finish in around 2 1/2 hours.  I felt really good for the first 8 miles and then I started hurting pretty bad in my legs.  I made it to 10 miles and had to walk for about 1 minute (but that's all I walked!)  The last 3 miles were TOUGH.  I was sore, my knees were killing me, my thighs were burning, my calves were on fire and my hips were achy.  I kept telling myself I needed to make it a half mile more.  I didn't get another bout of energy for most of the last 3 miles.  

It felt sooo good to finish though!  And Jared was there with the boys which was so great!  I got a little emotional when I saw them because I was proud of finishing the race and I was hurting so bad!  I think every muscle in my legs seized up when I stopped!  I finished in 2:34ish.  The bummer part is that I had to stop and go to the bathroom at mile 4 which I know took at least 4-5 minutes (if not longer).  It think I could have made the 2 1/2 hour run otherwise!

Overall, I'm really proud of myself!  I went from not being able to run 2 miles straight (11 weeks ago) to being able to run 10 miles without stopping and finishing 13.1 miles!  I battled through soreness, tiredness, runners knee and only lost 1 toenail throughout the whole training (which is a bummer because it ended up just being due to my shoes being too tight).

I prayed a lot during the race and it was nice to have that time with The Lord and to reflect on some things.  I'm not ready to say I will do another one someday but it isn't entirely out of the question!  Seeing as how I can't walk very well at this point, it will be awhile before the next one happens!  

My goal is to not let my running go.  I hope to continue to run 2-3 miles a couple of times a week to stay in shape and have a little quiet time in mornings!