Tag: racing

My Race-iversary!

2 years ago today I ran my very first 5k race. The Governor’s Cup. It was fun, and a little bit scary. The entire time I was running I thought to myself"I’m a fraud. Why am I running this? Everyone knows I’m not a ‘real’ runner.“I was plagued by self-doubt the entire time. But I did it and I was hooked. I decided that day to sign up for my next race: the 2011 Lincoln Half-Marathon.

So several 5k’s, 10k’s 2 half-Marathon’s and one FULL Marathon later, I decided I had to run my first race again! Never mind that I have to work from 2-11pm today and the race started at 3pm. I just came in early and left to run in the middle of it! 🙂

Today, I ran the race with no self-doubts. No inner pity party. Just the knowledge that I am a RUNNER. I’m a MARATHONER. And no one can take that away from me. And you know what? That’s an awesome feeling!

Oh, this was the first race that I’ve ever RUN THE WHOLE THING! The first time I ran it I walked a good portion of it, and did it in 39:15. This time I ran the whole time and did it in 33:00! And it was hot!! 81 Degrees! Where did that come from? I miss the cool temps of Chicago! I also wore my Chicago Marathon T-shirt and got a few comments on it! 🙂

Have a great day friends!

Half-Marathon Recap

I ran my first (and not my last!) half-marathon on May 1st! What an amazing experience! I may be remembering it with rose colored glasses, but I loved running the half! It was hard. I had to push myself through the last 3-4 miles. But I did it, and it was amazing!

So I had to be lined up by 6:50, but I didn’t get to cross the start line until 7:33am! I lined up in the 12:00 min. mile groups…behind the 2:45 pacer. That was a little longer than I was hoping to run, but I wanted to give myself some space.  I have always said that I like running because it is a solitary sport. I like that I can do it whenever and wherever. But I have to say, as I was standing in line waiting to begin the race, I was lonely.  Then about 5 minutes before the run began I ran into some friends, we chatted and then it was time and we were off!

It was AWESOME!

I started running down by the UNL Coliseum, that’s where the start line is, and I wasn’t about to start by walking! I was ready to go, I had been training for this day for months! And my run started out great.  In October, I ran my first road race ever, a 5k. We took some of the same path that the 5k took and boy, was it ever different from the half to the 5k. I felt so much better and more prepared for this race.  I set a nice easy pace, and off I went. Soon, I was passing people! Me, passing people! What a cool feeling!

There were already people walking only a few miles into the race, but I didn’t need to. And I knew if I walked I wouldn’t want to start running again! So I kept going. I saw my parents with my sign at mile 3, just before the 5k split and first aid station. My mom took some great pics!  I got my first drinks, took a gel and kept going. Soon, we were across town and I didn’t even feel it! I kept looking around thinking how far I had come since I had lost the weight. What a great feeling.

I got to mile 9 without stopping running. But this is where The HILL is. Its pretty much the only hill on an otherwise pretty flat course. So I ran up the hill, and then my heart was racing too fast, so I walked for a bit, then took off running again. Those last 4 miles, my knee was hurting and I was having trouble with a stitch in my side, so I kept having to run/walk. However, I was able to run most of the race, only ran about a mile.

My final time was 2:42:57. I beat my pacer, and kept ahead of the 2:40 pacer for a lot of the race! I am officially addicted to running. I am planning on running a 10k next month. And am looking for more runs the rest of the summer. What an awesome experience!