Heels and Hills and Him Half Marathon

I did it ! I ran my first half marathon yesterday and it was awesome. It was worth every early morning, every sore muscle, and all the hard work I've put into training. I was up at 4:40 am, and had my last sips of water and half a banana on the way to Iriving. I arrived at the race site about an hour and a half before start time. This gave me plenty of time to find chip pickup, visit the porta pottys several times, stretch, and mentally prepare. The timing chip was a little different than I've used before, so I had to furtively glance around at the other runners to see how they had laced it into their shoes. Got to watch a beautiful sunrise over the canal next to Williams square and before I knew it, it was time to line up. So I made my way to the middle of the pack and then we were off. Pacing was tough at the begining because everyone shoots out of the start fast, and when you are running with 500 other people there isn't much room to get out and go on your own. I had to really keep an eye on the Garmin and make sure I wasn't starting off too fast, I didn't want to burn myself out, and my goal was to keep an even, steady pace. I tried to run near people who were at about my same pace, but it took a few miles to find other runners who were at a similar pace. There were lots of people who blazed out of the start and then petered out before mile 3, and once I passed them I never saw them again. There were water/powerade stops about every two miles, so I didn't need to stop at all of them. I waited until about mile 4. They had powerade available first, and then later down the line water. Worked perfectly for me, because I could take a few sips of powerade, and wash it down with a few sips of water. I didn't want to run with a lot of liquid sloshing around in my stomach so tiny sips worked best for me. There were several spots for spectators to watch and cheer us on, which does a lot for motivation. My family was waiting for me at miles 5, 7 and 10. I got teary eyed when I saw my son holding up a poster for me. Now I know how my husband felt at all the races where we watched him and cheered for him. I know exactly how much it meant to him, because it meant the world to me. After I saw my support team at mile 5, I ran to mile 6 and I choked down a couple of power bar gel cap thingys and washed them down with a bit of water. These made me feel nauseous by mile 10, which means I'm going to have to find something different for White Rock. (I had planned to take sport beans with me, but couldn't find them anywhere in Rockwall on Saturday) I felt pretty good, and energetic for most of the race, and was at about a 9:40 pace until about mile 10. I could feel myself slowing down a little, and by mile 11 I was feeling slower and fighting a side stitch. I was also feeling the heat. It was hotter than it had been all week, and the last 2 miles of the race were not shaded. I was naseous, hot, and fatigued,and I knew that even if I walked the last 2 miles I would finish faster than my goal time. But I continued to run. I pictured in my mind the two miles it takes me to get home on a training run, when it's an easy coast to the house. I kept thinking this is a race, run it like a race. In 20 minutes you'll be done. In 4 songs you'll be done. I pictured myself crossing the finish line with a smile on my face. I pictured my support team, husband, kids and my dad all waiting to give me a big hug at the end. I pictured my medal. I was thirsty, but didn't want the added discomfort of water so I envisioned how wonderful a bottle of water would taste and feel after I was done. I reminded myself that I have run farther than 13.1 miles before, that this was a short distance for me. By the time I turned the corner and headed the down the stretch to the finish I had picked up my pace. I spotted my family, gave them a big wave and crossed the finish line with a huge smile. I was hot, sweaty, salty, lightheaded, parched and exhausted. I had given it my all, and had finished 15 minutes faster than my goal time. I did it ! I felt like doing a victory dance. I felt such a huge sense of pride and accomplishment, I don't think I stopped smiling the whole day. The actual race results show that I finished 28 out 86 in my age group and 217 overall out of 506. A good solid middle of the pack runner. I hope to keep improving my time and shave 5 minutes off my half time by the spring. Comparing where I am now to where I was a year ago is amazing to me. I ran the Turkey trot last Thanksgiviving which was my first distance longer than a 5K. 8 miles at about at 12 minute pace. Now I can run 13.1 miles at about a 10 minute pace. I certainly don't expect to run my marathon that quickly, and I'm not setting my goal until I get closer to race day and know what I can coax my body to do at much longer distances. I think yesterday's race was a great experience to help me prepare for a full marathon.