Since my last blog title had the word, fail, I have decided I will gloat on this one.
I finished the half marathon. No stopping, which was my goal! I will have to say I did not do it on my own. Ashley was a rock star. It didn't look like she sweat much and it seemed like a breeze...she probably could have kept on going. And Jonathan was so great to run with and he really kept me going. He was such a sweetheart and so much fun. He didn't even make fun of the runners in all their "garb" and the hoopla of the race (well, he made fun but not too much).
I have felt really great throughout this whole training process until the week of mile 12. During this run, I felt some kind of pain/twinge/something is not quite right, "HELL it HURTS" kind of thing in my upper butt, hip, lower back area. Hmm. Not really sure what it was.
I rested. It wasn't bothering me. Well, during the race, on mile 8, it came back. After a little pity party (during the race) that this came back up, I was able to pull it together and feel pretty good for a few miles (including a hill). Then literally at mile 12.5, I really didn't think I could go any farther. I felt like my leg was going to become detached from my hip joint or something. Of course this is dramatic, but I really did feel like that. Ask Jonathan (although he might confirm the "dramatic" part, but not the leg detachment issue).
Did I mention that Jonathan ran beside me the entire way? He could go MUCH faster, but he stayed with me the whole thing and it was awesome. Ash too. We all stuck together. At 12.5, when I was like, "Jonathan, I don't know if I can do it", he was so encouraging and was like, "We have trained 3 months for this and you have .5 miles to go, I will carry you from here if I need to but you are not stopping!". At the last mile, Ash started to go a little faster so I lost her in the crowd, but as we got to the finish line, she was there so we could all go across together.
When I crossed the finish line, I felt such a surge of emotions, I started to cry. That sounds so cheesy but I really did. Jonathan was like, "really?! get it together" and I did, but it was an emotional rush! And I felt so out of control of my body, I started to pee my pants....haha so bizarre! I really didn't (not like running down my leg or something) but I was amazed that my body felt like it was shutting down or something.
What an experience.
Now it's over. I honestly feel a bit of the post race blues. I was reading that because running helps your mood by boosting endorphins, adrenaline, serotonin and dopamine, following a big event when your running and exercise decreases your mood can drop. Hmmm. It makes sense. And it's the end of a holiday weekend with beautiful weather, the beach, a really great time with my husband and sister, and days of rest.
So, to keep running? And to be thankful for such great memories and the opportunities in my life. I am grateful despite a return to the hum-drum.
