Sunday, January 5, 2014

My first half marathon!!

Back in late August I got a text from my dad informing me that he had signed me up for a 1/2 marathon. Thanks dad. He explained simply by saying "it's time." He was right, we had conquered 5k, 10k & 15k's together over the past year, it was only a matter a time before the big 13.1. At least he gave me a solid amount of time for training. I immediately began searching for a 16 week training program and followed that as I prepared for the race in late December. Overall I really enjoyed the training process!

When I was about 5 days away from race day I completed my longest run, 11 miles around a great running area near me called back bay. If you run around the entire thing it's roughly 10.5. My friend Natalie joined me at about mile 4 and we cheered each other on for the remaining 7. Having a friend to join you on those long runs is a huge help! I felt great at the end of the run and had much more confidence about the half the next weekend. On the days leading up I kept it low key with short runs 2-4 miles and just focused on keeping healthy...the last thing I wanted was to end up with a cold the day before the race!

The morning of the race was chilly but exciting. I love walking up to the start of the race, thousands of people with so much anticipation and energy. I'll never get sick of that! Off we went. My dad and I stayed together the first 2 miles and then we lost each other at the first water station, from there I just went on. Friends have been asking me how it was and all I can really say is that it was just a blur but a lot of fun! I finished in 2 hours and 3 minutes. I was a little bummed that I didn't break 2 hours but I guess there is always next time! It was a great experience and I would recommend everyone to run a half marathon at some point in their life :) Go for it!

1 comment:

  1. Yyay! Go you!! That is a great time!! I love the half distance!

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