I have 12 million 13 thousand and a half other things I need to be doing. Right now. At this very exact moment. But for you, my friends, I have chosen to talk to you. I know, I know...it’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make for you...because I’m quite certain you are on the edge of your seat right now waiting to read what I could possibly have to say.
Today, my friends, I am sore. But not as bad as I was the past couple of days. Two days ago, I was partially paralyzed and giving strong consideration to the option of amputation being greater than enduring the pain in my legs. Ladies and no-gentlemen-that-likely-never-read-this....I present to you.................my half marathon story.
OK, so if there’s one thing I’ve learned more than anything, it’s this: having my “long runs” in training only consist of 4-5 miles a “few” times (two to be exact) is probably not the best idea as far as not wanting to be sore like this post-run. In the months and weeks leading up to the half marathon I ran on Sunday, I literally ran one 5 mile run one day and a 4 miler one other time and the rest of my sporadic runs were generally between 2-3 miles. Add to that, in the last two weeks leading up to the half marathon, I only ran once. Not exactly the Hal Higdon training chart. It’s the I-have-a-huge-event-coming-up-and-working-extra-hours-while-trying-to-maintain-ministry-support-to-my-husband-while-everyone-is-out-of-town training chart...
Enough of that. I’m tired of hyphenating.
Another thing learned: check and double check the headphones. OR just don’t opt to use my 8 year old son’s that cost $14.99 at Walmart. Apart from the fact that I was the only one out of all 10,000 other runners who had ginormous headphones draped around my neck, they didn’t even work. That being said, the playlist that I worked harder on than my actual training did NOT get played during my run. Major. Fail.
I’m not going to regurgitate every single mile for you or how I felt or any of that, but I will tell you a few of the things I took note of while running. First of all, despite Paul’s injured back and absolutely NO training whatsoever AND his physical therapist telling him NOT to run, he ran. Not because of his pride, but because of the experience and wanting to be with me and around the atmosphere together. I know. Sweet, right? He ran for the first two + miles with me and kept a faster pace than I would have had he not been by my side to talk to. When he took my headphones and jacket and left to be a spectator and cheerleader for me, I was kind of sad. Especially because of the headphone situation.
At that point, it just became me, my own thoughts and the crazy people with signs that kept me going. A few of the signs I saw and laughed at:
“Run, Total Stranger, Run!”
“The reason your legs hurt is because you’re kicking so much butt”
“Worst Parade Ever”
I saw my family just past mile 7 I think. That was the best feeling ever. And I was feeling very good at that point, keeping the pace that I had hoped. And then, we turned off Highway 2 onto 20th street, where they decided to add an extra 17 miles to the course, straight uphill, without telling any of the runners. Yeah, they said two miles, but I promise it was MUCH longer than that. And that part was brutal. Suddenly the signs people were holding weren’t as funny and my headphone absence taunted me as everyone I ran by had the luxury of musical distraction in their ears.
On Harrison street, I almost slipped and fell on the dead carcass of a freshly smashed snake. And I didn’t even care. And I think the person in front of me pooped their pants. I came up with a new idea for an addition to the marathon at this point. They have tables for water, ice, gatorade, vaseline, kleenex, oranges, etc....if there was a station to just punch someone in the gut and take their headphones without being disqualified, I totally would have stopped. Formal submission of my idea will be given to the Lincoln Track Club at a later date....
Second worst part of the race was turning onto 10th street and being able to see Memorial Stadium, where we ended....but it still being like 2 miles away.
I ran a little harder towards the end, only because I was trying to keep the pace with a woman, maybe 65-70 years old. When I turned in to the corner to go to Memorial Stadium, however, she kept going on the full marathon course and for a few seconds, I was dejected and sagged my shoulders. But with less than 500 yards to go, I couldn’t let it get me down. I had to finish strong. And I think I did. If nothing else, I took 20 minutes off my time from last year. I’m not a super fast runner by any means, but I DO run the whole thing....and I finished....
All in all, no matter how bad or good I felt, no matter how sore I am, I’m thankful for an opportunity to run and to conquer a few more things that I never imagined I could. As crazy as it is for me to even think about, I’m toying with the idea of trying the full next year ...... ..... ....
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