Yesterday, I ran my 2nd Half Marathon in Richmond! I must confess, I ran this half without training because in early October I started to have some pain in my achilles, and so I decided I needed to take a break for a few days from running. A few days turned into a week and then a week turned into a couple weeks and before I knew it, it was race day! Besides running I do many other workouts like Body Combat, Barre, Piloxing, Piloxing Knockout, Kickboxing, and Zumba just to name a few… So I knew that aerobically I would probably be okay to run the race, but wasn’t sure how it would feel during or even after the run.
My wave took off at 7:43 AM and I started counting down the 13.1 miles between me and the finish line! My main goal was to beat my first PR that I had last spring at the half in Virginia Beach. Starting off, I took it easy… I had 13.1 miles to go, couldn’t start off super fast! They had a tracker system so my hubby was able to get updates on where I was and how fast I was going — I was pacing a 9 min and 25 second mile! When I saw that, I was floored! I have had a hard time breaking the 10 minute mile mark so I was doing pretty well! This run was feeling amazing and Richmond was an awesome city to run. The main difference between this course and the Virginia Beach course was the hills. The hills were a challenge, but I was able to push through and get it done!
I reached mile 10, and really started to feel myself giving up. My legs were hurting, my feet were hurting, and my mind was telling me I was done. I knew deep down, I wasn’t done and I knew if I stopped and walked I would kick myself in the butt later. I kept pushing! I kept telling myself the pain was temporary and I was almost there! Don’t QUIT! The last 3.1 miles were the most painful and the hardest to keep myself going. I had that little voice telling me to stop but I wasn’t ready to stop!
There was a woman sitting at one of the last few turns whose sign read, “You only have 3 more turns and it’s done!” That sign was the motivation I needed to kick it into high gear! I pushed power and was just praying to see that big hill and the finish line. I wasn’t sure what my time was yet, but I knew this run had to be faster than my last. Coming down the hill, I felt out of control of my legs, but knew I was almost done! I crossed the finish line and my hubby was there waiting for me and my legs felt like JELLO! He immediately got a text of my time which was 2:04:55! I had shaved off 6 minutes off my time from VA Beach and I was ECSTATIC! I couldn’t believe it! Without training I was able to beat my PR! I have now created a new goal for when I run VA Beach again in the Spring to be at or below 2 hours (this time I’ll train 🙂 )
The running community is a great community to be apart of! These races are amazing and it’s great to be out on the roads of a city you grew up in and be able to run and really see the city. The spectators were AMAZING and they did a great job at keeping everyone motivated not just the loved ones they were there to see race! This morning I woke up VERY sore and VERY tight, but I am still over the moon about my accomplishment yesterday.
It really is a mind over matter type of situation. Not just with racing but with exercise in general. You are going to have that little voice in your head telling you to stop, telling you not today, and making you derail your progress. It takes strength to tell that little voice NO and it’s something that is VERY hard to do at times! Beginning and exercise program is hard, it is something that is outside of your comfort zone and it may cause you some pain and discomfort at first. Don’t let a little pain and discomfort stand in the way of an amazing feeling of accomplishment when you see gains and wins in your health! Those little pains and discomforts will go away and you will be left with amazing results that would not have happened had you continued on your current path. Make a promise to yourself and set goals for yourself! It is worth it in the end!
Build A Better You! 
I am currently training for my first half-marathon. I have always been a horrible runner, but strangely have always had the desire to pursue it anyway. Over the past few years, I have really come a long way. My first 5k was 42 minutes, and my most recent was 33:58. I decided to up the ante a little bit and register for a half in April. I am so excited, but there is that little voice in my head telling me I can’t do it. I also have friends that are discouraging it. This post was exactly what I needed to encourage me to overcome the negativity. I know I can do this. Thank you for your post!
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Amber,
Thank you for taking the time to read this post and commenting on it!
First, let me tell you this… Don’t listen to that voice and don’t let other people discourage you from challenging yourself! I ran my first half last March and I tried to train as best as I could prior to it, but classes got really busy for me and I only trained to 6.5 miles. I ran the race anyway and it was the best experience of my life! I proved to myself that I COULD do it! I ran my first half in 2 hours and 10 minutes and I was pretty impressed with myself because I ran the entire thing! This past half that I ran in November I had taken a few weeks off of running and it was much tougher to run that one, but I made it through and even had a new PR!
Tell that little voice you ARE going to do this! Get some good music on your phone/ipod and just run, run, and run some more! I found Runkeeper to be a great FREE App to use on my phone to help me train for my first half marathon. I wish you the best of luck in your race! It’s exciting! Don’t let anyone talk you out of it! You can do anything you set your mind to do!!!
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