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Thursday, March 24, 2011

Race Recap and WHY I do this

I cannot believe I ran a half marathon. Seriously. And I am pretty sure no one else can believe it. When I started this blog a few months ago I was worried that I wouldn't be able to do the 8k I planned on running March 20th. Running 5 miles sounded almost impossible to me. Instead of struggling through an 8k, I pushed myself through 13.1 miles and loved (almost) every second of it!


Going into the race I said several time that I could take most any weather condition as long as it wasn't windy. Windy it was, my friends. It was cold and windy and early and I was nervous! Luckily, I had met up with a friend at her house before the race and she had a drunken neighbor still up from the previous night sporting board shorts and a denim jacket show up at the house for some pre-race entertainment. Most random thing ever, but it lightened the mood and took our mind off the jitters for sure. And there was an up side to the cold too. I wore one of the hubsters ugliest sweatshirts for the first half mile and then chucked it on the side of the road and said goodbye forever to that hideous thing! If only I would have layered up and really got some closet cleaning done :)

The cold definitely made the first few miles hard, but I got into a groove around mile 3 and really felt good the rest of the race. Seeing all of the people around me pushing through mile after mile was so motivating. There was a blind athlete, a women with only one arm and so many older runners...the list goes on. Mile 11 and 12 were my fastest miles by far because I am not very smart and thought I only had a mile left when I saw the 11 mile marker and pushed hard...when I saw the 12 mile marker and realized what I had done I refused to slow down because I am just plain stubborn. Seeing the finish line was the most awesome feeling ever! Well, the most awesome until I realized that our medal doubles as a bottle opener. Nice.
When I got home, I was craving the most random food combo...

Running this half made me realize WHY I write on this blog, why I share my experiences on facebook and why fitness is such a passion of mine. This is a way that I can reach people. A way that I can help by simply doing something I love. If I can motivate ONE person to make positive changes in their life...to get in the gym when they would rather sit on the couch, to reach for something healthy when the ice cream is calling their name , to stay positive when all the odds are against them...then this is worth it. Having a friend tell me that she logged onto facebook, saw my race picture and was motivated to go to the gym after a rough week is literally the best feeling in the entire world. I know what it is like to feel overwhelmed and frustrated with your weight and I know that the key to turning that frustration into results is support. If this blog allows me to be that support to someone, I will write forever! 

In the meantime, I am looking for my next half...one that I can drag the hubs into! Sorry, babe, but you owe me <3


2 comments:

Null said...

Congrats on your 1st half! A utilitarian medal...very cool.

None many of my "IRL friends" are athletes and so it's hard to share the excitement with them. Blogging gives me that community and helps motivate me too. When I feel like throwing in the towel during a difficult part of a race, I think about having to post bad race report. That gets me going.

Keep up the great work!

Mikel Anne said...

You go girl, awesome! Love to hear that you are taking care of yourself during such a difficult time. Most wouldn't push to find the time to themselves when they are single parenting for half a year. So proud of you! Love your blog. XOXO

Mikey :)

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