Half Marathon & Celebratory Dinner

Wow, what a day! My dad and I set our alarms for 4:00, and had an early breakfast. To fill up for the race, I had a bigger breakfast than normal, lots of cereal, milk, and fruit, and made sure I drank a lot of water. We left the house about 5:00, and he took me to the runner drop off about 6:00. From there, all I could do was wait until the 7:30 start!

When the runners were released, it took me about 20 minutes or so to make it to the front. They had us take off in different corrals, and I was in number 13. The first 6 miles were great, the weather felt nice, and I was maintaining a nice pace. Miles 7-9, however, were a bit tougher. Not only did my body start to ache, but the heat and the sun were horrible. My pace started to slow, and I had to alternate between running and walking a lot more. The remainder of the race, miles 10-13.1, were brutal! By then, a lot of the runners around me were having to walk, my right hip was giving me a lot of trouble, and the back of my right ankle had a cut from my tennis shoe rubbing against it.

When I first went into the race this morning, my goal was 3:00:00. Because of my knee injury and being forced to stop running and training for a long time, I wasn't allowed to start back into my routine until a couple of weeks ago, and I had only been able to run a couple of times since March. I also didn't know how my knee would hold out during the race, so I knew I would be walking a good part of it. Although my time in January was 2:10:05, and I was able to run the whole time, when I finished at 2:35:30, I was so happy that I almost started crying at the finish line. Not only did I come in under my goal, but I was able to run a lot more than I had thought I would, and my knee gave me little trouble.

One of the things I love about races are the fun things you see! Not only were there great costumes and outfits from other runners, but some of the spectators have great signs as well. For this race, there was a live band at every mile, so that helped to keep everyone's spirits up! The volunteers were amazing, and I especially enjoyed when they had huge water hoses and sprayed the runners every so often to cool us off. Towards the end, there were even people handing out sponges filled with water, and a lot more along the course handing out drinks and food to refuel. There was one crazy guy I saw running the course barefoot, but I'd have to say the best runner story there, although I didn't get to see, was the soldier who surprised his wife at the finish line!

After the race, there were a lot of freebies for the runners, so I grabbed a banana, protein bar, and Gatorade to refuel. I took my finisher picture, and then met up with my dad, and we went home. After the race, I didn't have much of an appetite, so I had a small amount of soup my stepmom made, took a long bath and a nap, and then had an apple when I woke up. For dinner, my friend, Lindsey and I decided to eat at a local Mexican restaurant, Los Cucos. She had run her first 5K the same day, so we wanted to celebrate our races. I hadn't been to a Mexican restaurant since my dad and stepmom took me in the spring, so I was excited! Plus, by dinner time, my appetite had come back.

I ordered the Enchiladas Verdes, which included two tortillas, grilled chicken, and avocado, as well as a variety of cheese and sauces. On the side, I had some rice and beans, and had some chips and dip before our meal. It was a great end to the day, and I'm so proud of my friend for her completing her first 5K in under 30 minutes!

It was a wonderful day, and it couldn't have gone better. Great race, wonderful support from friends and family, and a celebratory meal with an awesome friend. I'm only a little bit sore right now, but I know that when I wake up tomorrow, I'll definitely feel it! I can't wait to run my next race in January, and now that I am allowed to run/train again, I hope to do better! When the professional pictures are posted that were taken during the race, I'll make sure to post some! :)

<3 Stephanie