Saturday was my big day - my first race of the year, and my second half-marathon. I've now been running for about 2 years and while I might be considered a "seasoned runner", I still feel very much like a novice when it comes to lining up with more experienced runners. Maybe it's the way their spandex clings to taught muscles, or the way they wear their headbands and bounce up and down, warming up at the start line - but thankfully, this was a local, smaller race and included some regular folks like me!
Last fall, I experienced quite a let-down after my seemingly successful half-marathon. It was sort of a post-partum depression... where my motivation to run and remain active hit all-time lows and I even gained 10 (or maybe a few more) pounds. To be honest, I believe a lot of those feelings were the result of my regrets and assessments of the race. Sure, I'd run a distance that most folks gasp at - WHAAAT? 21 kilometers (13 miles!) Running... without stopping??? However, what was most disappointing at the end of that race was how HORRIBLE I felt. My insides were churning and I thought I was gonna be sick. There was no glory; no relishing in the success. Due to my inexperience with racing, I had run full bore at the beginning and could barely cross the finish line. Not only that, but I drank too much water and spend 3/4s of the race wondering if I should jump into the bushes to relieve myself or just carry on and hope the horrible pain of a full bladder bouncing up and down would go away if I just kept on running. Then, when it was all over and I could now say that I had completed a half-marathon, I was left with the feelings of "What's next?" In the end, a busy fall, including a family vacation in September for 2 1/2 weeks, and a 10 day trip to India in November left me little time to think about training and keeping up with running.
Early this year, I had enough. I decided that the best motivation would be to put some money down on a race and then begin training. I found a local, smaller and lesser-know event called the Better-Half-Marathon that was raising funds for a great cause - the YWCA Harbor House, and an outreach in Kenya called the Esther Home for young, unwed, pregnant woman. Once I began training, I had a decision to make. Was I going to train for a PR (personal record) or was I simply training to get back in shape and be able to physically handle running this distance? In the end, the choice was fairly easy. I felt quite out of shape... and I still could recall the misery of last year's race. I wanted to run this race HAPPILY and comfortably. So the plan was to go easy on the training - not to over-do it, and certainly not to let it take over my life with a ridiculous number of training sessions per week.
At first it wasn't easy, and I wasn't even comfortable running what had used to be an easy 5k. Yet, as the weeks moved on, I became more comfortable and began to feel once again what I loved about running - getting into a comfortable stride, enjoying the fresh air and just having a chance to think and be alone.
Back to the present - it was the big day. My hubby and kids came out to support me, and my oldest daughter was even participating in the kids race! I thought it was pretty awesome that she was following in my footsteps - she even got 2nd place!
I was ready to go and moved to the starting line with the other runners. All I had to do was open up the Runkeeper ap on my phone so I could keep track of the miles and pace to help me in the race. Only... the GPS refused to work! I tried several times, even shutting down my phone and checking the settings. With only a couple minutes before race-time, I handed the phone over to my husband and asked him to try to fix it! All in vain... for some reason unbeknownst to me, my phone was not connecting to the satellites and I would not be able to track my run.
They counted us down and sent us off, along the chalk-marked trails in the river-bottom. Forgetting about my phone for the moment, I concentrated on starting out slow and steady. The worst thing about that, was finding myself near the back of the pack, with many people who looked as though they should be less fit than me...(you know what I'm saying...) running ahead of me! I squinted at the generously padded bottom running in front of me and reasoned with myself. I knew I would work up to a faster pace... I just had to warm up and then I could overtake these "less-fit" people ...like the older, pudgy, balding guy in florescent yellow.
For the first mile or so, I kept trying and re-trying to activate the GPS on my running ap and it just wouldn't work. Eventually I accepted it as fate - and further reason to run this race cheerfully, and for fun. As competitive as I can be, I decided to let go and just enjoy myself. I'm just out for a nice Saturday morning run, I told myself.
I found myself affixing a grin on my face and even when the speedy runners were turning around on their first loop, and then running past me, I smiled at them and would give them a thumbs up. As the race went on, and the first hour was long past, and racers were getting tired, I continued to smile at those I passed (or who passed me) and I'd cheerfully say "Way to go!" or "Good job!". Now that I think about it, I probably looked pretty goofy - but who cares... I was having fun!
Because what really mattered about this half-marathon... what really mattered about this particular race, was that I would both enjoy it and feel good at the end. I didn't want to be stuck on a number or be that runner who was staring at the ground ahead of me, grimacing and appearing to be either intensely concentrating, or in pain, or both.
When I completed the second loop, with only one more to go, my husband ran alongside me and told me that each loop was only taking me about 42 minutes. At that rate, my time should be about 2:06. I was actually quite surprised! Yes, that would be a few minutes longer than my race last year, but I felt as though I should be at least 10-15 minutes longer, considering how I was feeling.
In my last lap, I would intermittently pop an energy gummy into my mouth (My favorite kind are the Honey Stinger fruit smoothie energy chews). I would give myself a goal - like, when I reached the bridge I could have another gummy, or when I crossed a certain road I'd eat another one. That seemed to help pass the time, and give me extra motivation to hurry through that tiring last loop.
Finally I could see the finish line... and I still had the energy to pick up the pace and happily cross the finish line! Sure, my muscles were quivering and I was tired and sore and felt a blister on the inside of my foot - but I was done, with a time of 2:05:45 - just 3 minutes longer than last years race, but feeling way more successful!
I have plans to run another half-marathon in the fall, with a friend of mine. This time, I may do some speed training and try to shave some minutes off my time and go for a new PR. However, when it comes down to it, I'm realizing that the point of running (for me, anyway) is about how I feel - not how I look or measure up on a competitor's scale.
So ends this humble tale of my Happy-Half-Marathon....
Last fall, I experienced quite a let-down after my seemingly successful half-marathon. It was sort of a post-partum depression... where my motivation to run and remain active hit all-time lows and I even gained 10 (or maybe a few more) pounds. To be honest, I believe a lot of those feelings were the result of my regrets and assessments of the race. Sure, I'd run a distance that most folks gasp at - WHAAAT? 21 kilometers (13 miles!) Running... without stopping??? However, what was most disappointing at the end of that race was how HORRIBLE I felt. My insides were churning and I thought I was gonna be sick. There was no glory; no relishing in the success. Due to my inexperience with racing, I had run full bore at the beginning and could barely cross the finish line. Not only that, but I drank too much water and spend 3/4s of the race wondering if I should jump into the bushes to relieve myself or just carry on and hope the horrible pain of a full bladder bouncing up and down would go away if I just kept on running. Then, when it was all over and I could now say that I had completed a half-marathon, I was left with the feelings of "What's next?" In the end, a busy fall, including a family vacation in September for 2 1/2 weeks, and a 10 day trip to India in November left me little time to think about training and keeping up with running.
Early this year, I had enough. I decided that the best motivation would be to put some money down on a race and then begin training. I found a local, smaller and lesser-know event called the Better-Half-Marathon that was raising funds for a great cause - the YWCA Harbor House, and an outreach in Kenya called the Esther Home for young, unwed, pregnant woman. Once I began training, I had a decision to make. Was I going to train for a PR (personal record) or was I simply training to get back in shape and be able to physically handle running this distance? In the end, the choice was fairly easy. I felt quite out of shape... and I still could recall the misery of last year's race. I wanted to run this race HAPPILY and comfortably. So the plan was to go easy on the training - not to over-do it, and certainly not to let it take over my life with a ridiculous number of training sessions per week.
At first it wasn't easy, and I wasn't even comfortable running what had used to be an easy 5k. Yet, as the weeks moved on, I became more comfortable and began to feel once again what I loved about running - getting into a comfortable stride, enjoying the fresh air and just having a chance to think and be alone.
Back to the present - it was the big day. My hubby and kids came out to support me, and my oldest daughter was even participating in the kids race! I thought it was pretty awesome that she was following in my footsteps - she even got 2nd place!
I was ready to go and moved to the starting line with the other runners. All I had to do was open up the Runkeeper ap on my phone so I could keep track of the miles and pace to help me in the race. Only... the GPS refused to work! I tried several times, even shutting down my phone and checking the settings. With only a couple minutes before race-time, I handed the phone over to my husband and asked him to try to fix it! All in vain... for some reason unbeknownst to me, my phone was not connecting to the satellites and I would not be able to track my run.
They counted us down and sent us off, along the chalk-marked trails in the river-bottom. Forgetting about my phone for the moment, I concentrated on starting out slow and steady. The worst thing about that, was finding myself near the back of the pack, with many people who looked as though they should be less fit than me...(you know what I'm saying...) running ahead of me! I squinted at the generously padded bottom running in front of me and reasoned with myself. I knew I would work up to a faster pace... I just had to warm up and then I could overtake these "less-fit" people ...like the older, pudgy, balding guy in florescent yellow.
For the first mile or so, I kept trying and re-trying to activate the GPS on my running ap and it just wouldn't work. Eventually I accepted it as fate - and further reason to run this race cheerfully, and for fun. As competitive as I can be, I decided to let go and just enjoy myself. I'm just out for a nice Saturday morning run, I told myself.
I found myself affixing a grin on my face and even when the speedy runners were turning around on their first loop, and then running past me, I smiled at them and would give them a thumbs up. As the race went on, and the first hour was long past, and racers were getting tired, I continued to smile at those I passed (or who passed me) and I'd cheerfully say "Way to go!" or "Good job!". Now that I think about it, I probably looked pretty goofy - but who cares... I was having fun!
Because what really mattered about this half-marathon... what really mattered about this particular race, was that I would both enjoy it and feel good at the end. I didn't want to be stuck on a number or be that runner who was staring at the ground ahead of me, grimacing and appearing to be either intensely concentrating, or in pain, or both.
When I completed the second loop, with only one more to go, my husband ran alongside me and told me that each loop was only taking me about 42 minutes. At that rate, my time should be about 2:06. I was actually quite surprised! Yes, that would be a few minutes longer than my race last year, but I felt as though I should be at least 10-15 minutes longer, considering how I was feeling.
In my last lap, I would intermittently pop an energy gummy into my mouth (My favorite kind are the Honey Stinger fruit smoothie energy chews). I would give myself a goal - like, when I reached the bridge I could have another gummy, or when I crossed a certain road I'd eat another one. That seemed to help pass the time, and give me extra motivation to hurry through that tiring last loop.Finally I could see the finish line... and I still had the energy to pick up the pace and happily cross the finish line! Sure, my muscles were quivering and I was tired and sore and felt a blister on the inside of my foot - but I was done, with a time of 2:05:45 - just 3 minutes longer than last years race, but feeling way more successful!
I have plans to run another half-marathon in the fall, with a friend of mine. This time, I may do some speed training and try to shave some minutes off my time and go for a new PR. However, when it comes down to it, I'm realizing that the point of running (for me, anyway) is about how I feel - not how I look or measure up on a competitor's scale.
So ends this humble tale of my Happy-Half-Marathon....
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