More thoughts on the race

Looking back on the race, it's all kind of  blur, but there are a few things I saw that stand out.

1. The best sight? Seeing my husband at mile 6.8. I loved that I was able to steal a kiss and run :)

2. We ran past this huge wisteria tree. My grandmother had a wisteria bush at the edge of her yard by the driveway. And since she's no longer with us, it reminded me that she's still watching out for us and cheering us on.

3. I kept seeing the backs of shirts. One I kept seeing (either on multiple people or I was playing leap frog with another runner) said "Run, Sis, Run" so I obviously thought of my sister, knowing she was cheering me on from home.

4. Other memorable shirts: "They will run and not grow weary. Isaiah 40:31" (reminding me of God's faithfulness since that's what I was doing), "If you can read this, I'm not last" (belonging to a chick I promptly passed), "Does this shirt make my butt look fast?" (good for a laugh). I'm sure there were others, but those are what I remember.

5. Seeing my mom and kids near the finish...even if I almost missed them and they were kind of a blur.

And another random side note, the race was actually 13.22 miles :)

Saturday Sound-Off, a little late

With the excitement of the race this past weekend, I forgot to post last week's miles.

Weekly: 23.1 miles
YTD: 202.6 miles

Yes, I'm over 200 miles for the year! That is awesome!

Post your miles...

My half marathon finish

Action Sports International Check out my finish at the Dallas Rock N Roll Half Marathon! I was thrilled to finish in 2:20:31!

***I come across the finish line at about :10 into the video right in the center (I'm wearing a tank with black arm warmers and black tights). You'll see me...I raise both hands in the air, and I'm pretty sure I'm the one you can hear holler as she crosses :)

Race Recap

I did it! I finished my first half marathon yesterday. The Dallas Rock N Roll Half Marathon benefiting Susan G. Komen was an awesome first race!

Let's see if I can do this race justice...

We got up about 5:30 and headed out about 6. I debated shorts vs. tights and finally settled on tights. Then I debated my new shoes (which I suspected were causing my big toe/foot pain) vs. my old shoes (which need to be retired) and decided on the trusty Asics (saying a prayer of "God, bless these shoes" as I laced them up). My parents, kids and hubby dropped me off in downtown Dallas close to the start where I made my way to the Aloft hotel to meet up with the Komen fundraisers/runners. I was so thankful for that warm lobby! It was quite chilly, especially that early. My hubby drove my parents and kids to Fair Park to wait at the finish line while he took DART to find me at the start and then again at the halfway point.

I had quite a wait but got to down a granola bar and enjoy real bathrooms before we paraded past all of the corrals to ours...corral 11. There I was able to meet up with Marsha and Margie, two of my Team BFF's from the walk in November. My hubby got to stay with me until the start, and I really appreciated having his calming influence there with me (plus I got to keep my fleece jacket and gloves on as long as possible). Shad and his buddy Rusty joined us in our corral as well. I've never run with anyone, but Shad said he'd run with me at my pace...so I took him up on it. It was great to have company on the run, especially knowing he'd done this 18 times before!

We started off pretty easy. I tried not to watch my Garmin too much, knowing I can get too focused on how slow I am and how much farther I have to go. We did a pretty good job of keeping the pace between 10 and 11 minutes/mile. I felt great the whole time!

Chad made it to the stop at around halfway (right at 6.8, I think). I was so happy to see him! I ran over and gave him a kiss and kept on running.

I was thrilled when we hit 10 miles, knowing I'd only run 10 or more twice before. And I was just as thrilled when we passed 11, knowing I'd now gone farther than ever and was still feeling great. My legs were getting heavy, especially my right quad/hip area, but thankfully, my big toe/foot never gave me an issue.

Right at the end, Shad backed off and let me finish...and finish I did! I did get to see my mom and kids at this point (although it was kind of a blur, but I did wave). I need to plug in my Garmin to see how much faster I was going, but I felt amazing nearing the finish line. An announcer was telling the first-timers to cheer, so I did :) I was completely pumped crossing the finish line! I'll share that link in another post.

The finish line was a little confusing. I'd done the wave start at White Rock for the marathon relay, but I didn't have to maneuver the finish area. They had all the food/drinks set up right at the end. I did make sure to get my picture taken!

I connected with my parents and texted my hubby so we could all meet up at the Komen VIP tent, where I scarfed down a piece of a turkey sandwich. I was so ready for a shower, so we didn't stay too long, but I did run into a college classmate who also ran the half for Komen.

Overall, it was an amazing experience. After having such a horrible run last weekend, I was terrified...but I kept telling myself that this was a mental thing and that I had trained right and trained well and had this...and I can't get over how good (no, make that amazing!) I felt the whole way! I'm pretty sure I smiled the entire time (ok, maybe not every second...). And to top it off, I finished in 2:20:31...under my goal!

I'm sure I'll think of things I left out and add a few things, but here it is in a nutshell.

It's almost here!

I am so stinking nervous about the Dallas Rock N Roll Half this weekend! Every time I even think about it, my stomach drops. I'm excited too. I know I've put in the training, and I know I can do this. I'm more worried about the logistics of getting to where I'm supposed to be and where my family will be and that sort of thing. Still, it's going to be a great experience.

I have one easy run left tomorrow evening, and that is it! 3 months of hard work is finally coming to a conclusion...I keep visualizing me crossing that finish line. My goal is to do it with a smile on my face!

Saturday Sound-Off

This concludes my last "regular" week of training before my race! I can't believe it's finally here! I have a couple of runs left this week, but I am done with "long" runs before the race.

However, this morning's long run did not go nearly as well as I'd hoped. I made it 9 miles in all, but that included a lot of walking...the first time I've ever had to walk, at least during this race's training. I debated getting my lazy rear out of bed at 6:30 this morning, but I wanted to enjoy a little more sleep on this last chance of Spring Break...so I did. And now I regret it. It was much too warm by the time I got out to run, and I really felt it. Or more specifically, my stomach did. And once I took a walk break, it was really difficult to run again.

I'm choosing to just accept this as part of training and keep on keeping on (I can say that now, after a wonderfully relaxing manicure with the promise of a pedicure soon after my half). I know that I can do the distance, and I'm pretty sure I know a few things that will keep me from ending up in the same spot next week. The biggest thing is that the race will be early and not too warm.

So here's the week's mileage:

Weekly: 19.4 miles
YTD: 179.5

Post your miles here!

Saturday Sound-Off

I decided to make this morning's long run 11 miles and do just 9 next week. I was leary of running 11 the weekend before the race. Let me tell you...that was a hard 11 miles! First, I was overdressed. I didn't realize how warm it really was outside and wore my long tights and arm warmers. I hooked those into my SpiBelt by mile 3. I also did not have enough water...again. I should have stashed some somewhere, but I just didn't. There were times I'm pretty sure walking would have been faster. But I'm stubborn and wouldn't walk. Ok, that's not totally true. I did walk once while I was trying to get the sports beans package open.

I think part of the problem was that I didn't find my rhythm for a couple of miles. I could see my ponytail bouncing in my shadow and knew something was off. And I focused too much of what didn't feel right (i.e. hurt) instead of focusing on the run.

Still, having run 11 tells me that I can do the 13.1! What I thought was impossible isn't!

So here's the weekly mileage:
Weekly: 23 miles (my first 20+ week!)
YTD: 160.1 miles

Post your miles here!

Nerves

I don't know what it is, but I am super nervous about my half now. I realized today as I was leaving school that by the time we return from Spring Break, I'll have completed my last two long runs before the race. And it scared me. My stomach just drops when I think of how close the race really is. I've got a long run tomorrow. 11 miles. And it scares me too. I know I did 10 last week, but what if I can't do it again? What if things start hurting? I think I'm imagining it, but it seems like I've got lots of new aches and pains today.

I know my training has been pretty solid, except for getting in that core training. Still, I know I can do this. It's just a nerve thing, but I can't quite get it under control.

Sunday Scheduling

Spring is here, and the schedules are crazy. But, it's the scheduling that keeps me sane. So, here's what this week looks like...so far:

Monday: Easy run, 3 miles
               -T-ball practice, which means an easy meal or a crockpot meal
Tuesday: Core training
               -Date Night! Wednesday is our 9th anniversary, so we'll celebrate that!
Wednesday: Tempo run, 5 miles total with 3 miles at 10:11 pace (but I know I'll go faster)
               -Hang Time and meal at church
Thursday: Easy run, 3 miles (during dance)
               -dance at the Y
Friday: Core training
               -Woohoo! Spring Break starts!
Saturday: Long run, 10 miles
               -No plans...is that really possible?
Sunday: Rest

But in the meantime (meaning today), I'm planning on a date with some Icy Hot, some ice packs, and a pillow. :)

This week's wrap-up and the Saturday Sound-off

I haven't posted this week, so this may be a little long. Stick with me...the weekly miles are at the end.

Let's start with this week's runs.

I started the week with 3.5 miles (if I remember correctly, 3 running and .5 warming up/cooling down). Good way to start the week. I was looking forward to being on a normal week...meaning not the "easy" week of last week but back to easy/speedwork/easy/long. And then by Tuesday, I was not feeling good. Ok. That's an understatement. By Tuesday night, my allergies had flared up horribly. It was awful. So obviously, I skipped Wednesday morning's speedwork. And then I didn't think there'd be any way schedule-wise to fit a run in Thursday even though I was feeling better. But I did! My hubby was able to come home earlier than normal because he'd been umpiring baseball, so we had an early dinner and he took our daughter to dance (and took our son with him) because I had a team mom meeting that would have kept me from staying at dance the whole time. But that left me with just a little time to myself. And I could not pass up that chance. The weather called to me. The sun setting called to me. The road called to me. I got an easy 3 in with my new shoes, and it felt fabulous (even after a dinner at Taco Casa). I don't know if it was awesome because it was unexpected, or if it was because I was finally feeling better, or if it was because of the new shoes, or the faster speed, or what...but it was wonderful! That gave me the much-needed boost in confidence for the weekend's long run. I was doubting I could do 10 since I'd missed a long run two weeks ago (only ran 3 on a scheduled 10) and last week had been an easy week. But....

I did it! I ran 10 miles this morning! It wasn't easy, but it wasn't as hard as I expected either.

Some things I learned:
-I need to figure out how to carry more water. I should have stashed some on my route, but I didn't really plan that far ahead.
-I do not like the Honey Stinger gels! Yuck. They gave me the boost I needed but I did not like the flavor.
-My energy chews do not like cold weather. They were really hard to get down.
-Running on biscuits, eggs and bacon isn't as bad as I thought it would be.
-I can do this!

So, 3 weeks from tomorrow, I will run my first half marathon! I'm excited, but now I'm realizing that I really, really, really have to get busy fundraising. I need at least $150 more, but would love to do more than the minimum. And thanks to my sister for donating after I mentioned it in last week's post! Just in case you missed that one, my website is: www.info-komen.org/goto/cmjohnson. Won't you consider donating?

This week's mileage:
Weekly: 16.5 miles
YTD: 137.1 miles