The Finish Line

This past weekend I met my goal. With 5 months of training, a few physical setbacks, and the best support group I could ask for, I ran my first half marathon.

 

I realize to some that this feat is no extreme accomplishment-people run half marathons all the time. But I am the girl who never thought this distance was within her reach. I remember very clearly the days when three miles, heck, one mile felt like an eternity. Back in high school, I was the girl who tried cross country and dropped out because my feet kept going numb after 2 miles and I got stitches every time I ran. I hated it. But now, I have learned that if you want to achieve any goal, it takes a committed effort riddled with drawbacks, setbacks, and struggles that you must fight through. I also learned, you have to trust the process of training.

There were many days when I wasn't sure if I was ever going to be able to run the 13.1 mile distance...or anything even close for that matter. Throughout my training, the most I ever ran before the race was 8.5 miles which led to an injury that took about 3 weeks to nurse back to full function. Aside from the physical challenge, there were many mental hurdles as well. Every run I have ever been on (5k,10k, and even most training runs) I always have someone with me to talk to and run with. Having someone run with me definitely adds a level of comfort if, say, something went wrong, I fall or injure myself mid run, or if I just need that extra mental push to keep going. For this half marathon race, I wanted to be alone. I had to make a deliberate decision to make this race for no one else but me. I think this is really important for anyone training. At some point, even though friends and family are SO important, you have to do what you're doing for you. Even though for race day I had tons of people around me, the 8.5 mile run I did alone (and other shorter runs) during training tested me to not be afraid of running alone. It challenged me to be my own motivation, reach my distance goal, and trust that my body can truly take me the distance. This practice honestly gave me more confidence going into race day and I would encourage others to do the same.

The race itself was awesome. I had trouble sleeping the night before, but my parents, husband, and good friend, Lisa, all saw me off at the starting line. Later my father-in-law met up with them to cheer me on at the different mile markers and they all relayed snacks to me as I ran by. I stuck with a pacing group with the mile pace of 11:27 and total completion of 2:30. The pacer talked to the whole time, telling stories of her husband, travels, and her life as an optometrist. She was great and made the first 6 miles fly by. Come miles 7-9, the run started getting a little more difficult, but 10-13 were the difficult miles because the sun was beating down on the runners. They started dropping like flies. I probably saw 5 different runners all getting driven away in gurneys with iv drips and cold compresses. It was pretty intense. I just kept chuggin along and actually felt pretty awesome the majority of the time. The finish line was at a top of a hill, but I ran the whole thing and ended with the time of 2:29:13.

I loved it. I had such a great time and felt so loved by my family and friends. My husband made signs and they kept telling me how proud they were. Only problem? I've got the racing bug. I am already looking into another half and toying with the idea of running a full in October. Gah! Who knows. All I know is that days like these keep me motivated to stick with this fitness journey I am on. I can't wait to see what I can accomplish next!!

"A great accomplishment shouldn't be the end of the road, just the starting point for the next leap forward." -Harvey Mackay

What goals have you set out to accomplish this year?