Tag: running

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!

Bad runs, bad weather, and bad days

Last week sucked.

Just sucked. My boss pretty much found something new everyday to yell at me for. Even though much of it wasn’t my fault. Somehow, I ended up taking the blame for all the bad stuff that happened. I tried to remember that it wasn’t my fault, and ended up running out much of my frustration. So that was good. But when each day brings another “Melissa, you got a minute?” call into his office, it makes the day go downhill pretty fast. But I just remember, that this is just a job, not my life. Keep repeating that. It’s just a job, not my life. Maybe it will sink in someday.

Weather here in the Heartland is CRAZY! Monday and Tuesday we hit record highs…96 degrees! It was perfect for my runs outside before work in the morning! I love the warm, summer days. Makes running so much more fun when you can get outside and begin your day with a run at 6:30am! Sigh. Lovely!  Then, as it always does, the weather changed. Only a few days later we had tornadoes for 2 days and severe thunderstorms. I work as a TV News producer, so my boss made me stay after work (without extra pay, because I’m salaried!) to keep an eye on damage. Luckily, it wasn’t too close and too bad, so I went home only a little late. 

But then the weather changed! The old saying is, “if you don’t like the weather in Nebraska, walk a block, it will change!” By Friday, highs were in the low 50’s and lows back in the 30’s in the mornings. So I went back the treadmill.

Sunday was supposed to be my first long run since my half-marathon. Despite wanting to go outside, it was too cool and windy, so I got on the treadmill and learned a very valuable lesson: Pop before a long run is my enemy.

Seriously. I haven’t had a run end so badly in a long time. I know that there are bound to be good runs and bad runs, and I had been on a streak of pretty great runs, so I was due for a sucky run. But man, did this one take the cake. My side was killing me! I determined that it was because I had some pop with lunch about 2 hours before. I wanted to run 5 miles, but managed a very tortured 2 miles before I was forced to stop. I chalked it up to a bad run combined with pop and mixed with a crappy week.

Today starts a new week. I need my running to go better. I decided to sign up for an awesome 5k in about a month and then my 10k is the next week. So I have some mileage to get in!

Happy Monday friends!