I'm back for a bit to share some exciting news. I completed my 1st half marathon! This was a long time in the making as i trained last year and then failed to have the courage to sign up for one believing I wasn't ready.
Before the race. I'm in all black....like a race ninja!
I feel really good about how I did. People are right when the say it's really a mental battle. You have to physically train of course but when it starts to hurt you will want to quit. At this time you have to run with your heart and call upon some mental toughness. I did this alot. I knew I would be far more disappointed with myself if I didn't push through than I would be in discomfort physically.
My race goals were....
-just finish
-finish in under 2:10
-finish at 2 or just under.
These photos are taken just before the finish line. I really tried to finish strong since I knew I was so close to my goal time.
One of the things I kept thinking during the race, especially during the end is.... No way in hell I'm ever going to run a full marathon. No way! I just cannot imagine only being half done with my race at 13 miles. Just NO.
I did it!
I finished in 2:00:30. My goal time! I could have done a bit better but I was in the wrong corral and had to pass a ton of people in the first mile to get in the right place.
I figured up quickly in my head after that first slow mile (which is amazing considering I'm terrible at math) that to make my goal I would need to make at least half of these miles under a 9 min mile.....and I did!!
Here's the results emailed to me later that day. Pretty cool that they break it down to how many people you passed and how many people passed you.
Afterwards I was hurting pretty good. My feet and hips ached as I limped back to the car. Today when I woke I actually feel good. My calves are a bit tight so I think I'll take a walk later and do some foam rolling. I should be good to go after that.
