I am excited to tell the world that I ran a half marathon on Saturday. I can finally check it off of my bucket list.
Thursday morning, my hubs and I drove down to Salt Lake City for a little getaway. Our first stop was to Scheels, where we spend basically our whole tax return. Not really, but we did buy a baby carrier for when we go to the grand canyon next month AND a new, bigger tent for our expanding family. It was so fun to watch Corde in Scheels. It was like watching a kid in a candy store.
From there we went a few other places, including the mall where I had to find the self-control to not buy any clothing, because THRIFT.
Corde and I are lucky enough to have friends who live in Salt Lake City and let us stay at their home for a few nights. They are the sweetest couple ever. They had to work for most of our trip, but we loved the time we were able to spend with them.
After spending Thursday out having fun, Corde and I went Friday morning to pick up the packet for my half marathon (which was also fun) and then we went around doing more fun stuff.
Finally, Saturday rolled around and Corde, Russell and I got up bright and early. My race started at 7:15am and we arrived at 6:30am. In the meantime, my husband and son looked adorable snuggled up together.
After I started my race, Corde and Russ went back home to catch up on some Z's and came back to watch me cross the finish line. It was such a great experience for me and went a million times better than I thought it would.
What I learned running my first half marathon:
I wish I would've looked more closely at the weather forecast. I knew that there was a chance of rain on Saturday, but I also was expecting that some miracle would occur and the sun would shine. The day before my race, the weather forecast said rain also, but it ended up being a beautiful day. I showed up to my race at 6:30am and had capri running pants and a jacket over my shirt. I thought it was a perfect amount of clothing and it would have been if it hadn't rain. After about 2 miles into the race, the rain started pooring. I literally couldn't see ahead of me for a short time because so much rain was being dumped on me. I wish I would have brought a rain jacket because my jacket absorbed the rain and just added extra weight. by the time my race was over I was so wet and cold.
Long story short, dress accordingly.
I'm glad I didn't talk myself out of it. The truth is that I was going to switch to a 10k last minute because I kept feeling like I was unprepared or just not a good enough runner. I ignored that negative little voice and did it anyways. I finished my race with a smile on my face and it turned out I was more prepared than I thought.
I'm glad my only goal was to finish the race. This being my first half marathon, I didn't want to push my self so hard to the point of being miserable. I wanted my run to be a fun experience. I originally told myself that after 6 miles, I'd walk a mile and then run two miles, until I finished. my only goal was to finish the race and do my best. I surprisingly ended up running the entire time. I ran at a pace that worked for me and felt very calm because of the goals I had set for myself. For my next half marathons, I'll probably set a more specific goal for myself now that I know what to expect from a half marathon.
I'm glad I had support. Before my race, I didn't think I'd care whether or not someone was waiting for me at the finish line, but seeing my husband and son waiting for me made my heart explode with joy. I also pushed myself harder knowing that my husband cared and was proud of me. If possible, recruit friends and family to come watch you cross the finish line.
I hadn't considered the after effects. The truth is that in my head I was thinking that when I finished my race, Corde and I would go get cupcakes and shop around some more. Instead, I finished my race, couldn't even stand up on my own and ended up going back to our friends house and sleeping. My body felt achy, like I was sick. My head hurt too. I'm also still very sore. Everywhere.
If you are reading this, wondering if you are capable of running a half marathon, the answer is yes. I started "training" for my half marathon about 3 months prior to the run. The farthest I ran during that 3 months was about 8 miles and that was only once. The rest of my runs were about 3 to 5 miles and I only ran on average 3 days a week. With that amount of training, I was able to run 13.1 miles in 2 hours and 25 minutes.
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