1/2 Marathon

I made it through my first 1/2 marathon! The race was in Lake Mills, WI on Sat. The day started out cold and blustrey and ended even colder. It was all of 36 degrees with a light freezing rain and blowing winds, not ideal running conditions. At least we didn't have to worry about overheating.
I felt good going into this race. All my hr numbers were in order and Coach Matt had everything clearly spelled out for me. I knew exactly what I needed to do. When we got to the race it was crazy. By the time I picked up my packet and got through the massive bathroom line it was just about start time. I couldn't find my friend and her husband that were racing too, turns out I wouldn't see them until the end because they're way faster than my slow self. My husband and 3 kids were there as well as my parents, my best friend and her fiance. Quite the cheering section! I was feeling self-induced pressure to do well.
I started off slow but my heart rate was totally jacked up which I think is pretty normal at the start. As people were blowing by me I was struggling to find my groove - the sweet spot, my stride...I felt like I was totally floundering. As soon as I'd get my heart rate back under control there would be some massive, huge hill and it shot right up again. I cycled like this for about 4 miles and relized this was a major mental thing. I had trained well for this event physically, but mentally I was a complete amatuer as well. I started thinking I have only ever ran 5K's. If this had been a 5K I would be done by now and it wouldn't have mattered if I found my stride or not.
By about mile 6 I relized I wasn't going to finish with the time I wanted, but who cares, I'm still going to finish well. I hit my stride and by mile 8 all was good. My hr was still above what I wanted but mentally I was there. I cranked out miles 11 - 13 passing people along the way and all the sudden it was over. My finish time ended up to be 2:14. Averaged a little over 10 min. miles - not great, not bad for a beginner. My cheering section was extremly proud. But I'd compare it to a figure skating routine. When the skater begins and misses the first triple axel combination and falls on her butt, she gets up and finishes the rest of the routine beautifully.

Well, as encouraged as I was last week I have to say this past week was a hard one. The continuation of Ouchtober. I can see how the pattern is shaping up - as soon as you start to feel great, it's time to hit it hard again. It got to the point that I think my body doesn't trust me anymore. When I go to bound up or down the stairs or get out of the car I have to talk my legs into it first. Training has been 6 days a week - running 3x's a week, biking 2x's, yoga and weight training. It's keeping me out of trouble, or I'm knee deep in it.
On Sat. Nov. 8th I'm doing the Tyranena 1/2 marathon in Lake Mills, WI. In preparation for that I ran my longest distance ever - 12 miles! It felt good. I'm incredibly nervous about the race, but I'm confident I can finish. I can't get over the fact that I actually ran that far already. In August I could barely run 3 miles! This is huge for me. I'd hated running starting back in Jr. High. Remember doing the dreaded mile run in gym class, I sucked at it. Ever since then I figured I'm not cut out for running. You never know what you can do until you do it. I can't say enough about the training I've gotten from TFP, and I'm just beginning. I feel like I've been in the dark all these years.