0 Jungle Run half marathon

Well hello blog land :) I decided to come back and let you know about the half marathon I ran this past Sunday. 

My running buddy, Austin, asked me a few months ago to run his first half marathon with him. I hadn't been running regularly, but I agreed because how can I not?

By the way, Austin HATES taking pictures, so he usually takes bad pictures on purpose. He will give me the worst faces possible when I tell him I want to take a picture. 

He also hates when I sing to him. Or when I dance-run. Or when I get extra excited in general about the run or anything else. He likes to be extra grouchy to balance out my bubbly, but it's all an act, I know it. So don't mind him. Oh, he's single, ladies.

On to the half!

Sunday morning was the most perfect day for a run. The weather was cool, but sunny, and never became an issue. I don't think I ever noticed it to tell you the truth. 

The race started right at 7am and I was pumped. We headed up a hill right away, so our first mile was just over 9 minutes. Austin and I had spent the last 12 weeks running our long runs together, and always kept a pretty decent 9:30/mile pace, so I wasn't expecting to have anything different for a race. But Austin did. He pushed our pace, and I just had to go with it or run by myself. 

I felt pretty good for 10 miles, then started to feel the mileage in my legs. I had even become a little worried when all of the mile markers were coming in a little ahead of my Garmin watch, and then the 9 mile marker was half a mile early. I knew the race would be a little short, I just didn't know how much so. 

I had been keeping an eye on my watch to make sure my pace didn't fall too much. I really struggled the last 3 miles, but knew I was so close to a PR that I kept pushing. 

I guess Austin's faster pace, and the idea that I could PR were exactly what I needed. I ended up running 13.05 miles {agh, I hate short courses!} in 1:58:26! I was completely ecstatic and couldn't believe it. I am so counting this by the way, even though it was .05 short. 

So, this is a 6 minute PR, and I ran a sub-2 hour half marathon! Austin came in about 20 seconds ahead of me and said he didn't even feel phased and could have kept up his faster pace or gone further. He is crazy. I am really proud of him for achieving a sub 2 half on his first try. 

 

Something fun about this run was the panda motif! The bibs, t-shirts, and medals all had pandas on them. So cute :)

As for race photos; Well, I didn't think there was a race photographer, as there were none along the course. There was a sneaky jerk at the finish line, so the photos I found look horrible! If I can figure out how to share them, I will, but photobucket is being a pain and won't upload my web snippets. I guess the horror can stay hidden!

So there you have it, a blog post and a race recap all on the same day ;)

Detail: Jungle Run half marathon

0 Reason to run

Thanks to my friend Austin asking me to run his very first half marathon with him, I signed up for a half marathon last night. Had I not been asked, I most likely would not have decided to do this on my own. 

This year has been tough for me and running; we just aren't getting along very well. I think training for and running three half marathons last year took a toll on me, mentally and physically. Last fall, right before my last half marathon, I sprained an ankle and had already been running through hip flexor issues for months. The ankle got better, but the hip issues continued. My running definitely decreased after Nike Women's marathon, and once the New Year came around, I wasn't even interested for the most part. I signed up for the Santa Cruz half marathon that was on April 7, but sold my bib as I really didn't even want to run it, and stopped training mid way through my plan. Now I have to run, as I am just about 12 weeks from this next half marathon, and I have someone counting on me to run with them.

I ran on Wednesday to show support and solidarity for the runners affected by the Boston Marathon bombings, and it didn't suck. 

Visualizing the people who lost their lives, or were injured while running what could have been their dream race made my own discomfort and lack of desire seem small in comparison. Perspective will do that to you. I think the Boston bombing is another factor in why I thought it would be good to sign up for another half marathon. No evil act will stop us runners from racing; you can't take away our desire to run and race with fear and uncertainty. I love, now more than ever, the community that running provides. So I will be running this half marathon in July for the casualties of the Boston Marathon bombing, holding them in my heart as I train for, and then run my fourth half marathon. 

It won't be easy. I am sure I will have runs that suck more often than runs that I love. I will hurt, and probably a lot. I will deal with my nagging hip issues, and most likely new injuries to add to my list. I have a training plan that incorporates yoga once a week, and cross training and strength training a few times a week. I hope that supplementing my running with that will help to strengthen and stabilize my muscles, making me a better, faster, and less injury prone runner. Wish me luck, I am going to need it to keep my head focused on the end goal, and not get bogged down by all the little things in the middle. 

Do you run? Do you have races coming up? How do you stay focused, keep your training tight, and avoid injuries? 

If you don't run, would you ever consider training for a 5k race, just to see if you can do it?

Detail: Reason to run

0 Friday's letters

Linking up with Ashley for Friday's letters because I really miss that girl :(

Dear Ashley, I saw a car that looked like yours this week and it totally sunk in that you are across the country and no longer 10 minutes away. I miss you. Hope Michigan is treating you well. I think I will be visiting that beautiful state in the next year, because you are now one of many wonderful friends I have who live there.

From our friend Kate's bachelorette party at the Dry Bar back in September

Dear Billy, I'm so sorry you've been sick this week. Four days is a long time to be cooped up inside, feeling like death. I really hope you are on the mend now, and that I did all I could to help you feel better. There's only so much a girl can do for colds. OTC cold meds, throat lozenges, Airborn, vitamin C, water, and rest were what I ordered and what you complied with. Hope work treats you well today!

Dear Mermaid duathlon, I have absolutely no idea if I am ready for you. I have been training for the Nike Women's marathon, rather than a little sprint duathlon, but I figured it was worth the entry. I can blast out the 1.5 mile run, 12 mile bike, and 2.5 mile run no problem...I think.

This is my first race bib with my name on it! 

{The text says "I am fast enough, I am strong enough, I am good enough, I am mermaid athlete}

Dear Nike Women's half marathon, I just want you to be over already. You have been looming over me for far too long, and I am sick of being afraid of you. I will rock that hilly course, get my Tiffany's necklace, eat my Ghiradelli chocolate, and conquer you like the mythical beast you are. I may come out of the race battered and broken, but I will finish. 9 more days!

Dear self, I'm sorry you are kinda broken. I know I haven't been the best to you lately, but I am making up for the ouchies with lots of chocolate this week. But frankly, the candy has got to stop. I will NOT gain my usual October-January 5-10 lbs of weight from excess candy and junk food intake. Also, I never fully got rid of last year's weight! I'm doing something different this year, I swear. 

Dear Dr. JP Bourget of Mission Chiropractic, thanks for lasering, taping, adjusting, PTing me {story to come}, and generally geeking out with me the last two weeks I've been in to see you for various injuries. I think it's cool that you think I am weird in the best way, that my back is an anomaly and you have no clue how to begin treating me because I am unlike anything you've worked on before. I also think it's pretty neat you brought in the other two doctors to feel my crazy crackly scar tissue, which we have decided is probably tendon moving over rod and not to be worried about. Oh, and the fact that you are a hockey player from Calgary, Alberta made me think highly of you, if only because my girls Alison, Leigh, Nicole and Leslie are pretty stellar and make Canadians awesome. 

Detail: Friday's letters