Hello all! As you know I recently ran in and completed the Yukon Do It Half Marathon on 12/31/12. It was an interesting experience because I was severely under trained. Unfortunately life got in the way (along with the short days and cold weather) and I wasn't able to get all of my long runs in. Here is a recap of that race!
I woke up at 6:30 am on Monday December 31, 2012. I knew exactly what I was wearing because I had set it out the day before. I quickly got dressed and went downstairs to pour my coffee. I like to drink coffee the morning of a race because it gives me a nice little jolt and also aids in pre-race digestion. I made my breakfast, the usual maple flavored oatmeal and a banana. Just enough food to give me energy but not too much that I feel bloated or heavy! This was discovered simply through trial and error. I once ate cereal and milk before a long run and I will NEVER do that again. I will just leave it at that!
After breakfast I was able to put my shoes on and gather my water belt together. I put the water bottles in the fridge the night before so they would be cold. Looking back on that now, it seems silly since it was 30 degrees when I started the race! After I was all ready to go I had a few spare moments to sit on my iPad and play some games to calm my nerves. I should mention that while I was eating and getting myself ready, my husband was waking up our 4 kids and getting them fed as well. I love traveling with my own cheerleading squad!
We all piled in my van and left the house around 8 am and arrived at the start line around 8:30. It was COLD!!! I ran in to my friend Marissa and sat in her car for awhile to try and stay warm. Around 8:50 we decided we should go use the restroom and get ready for the start of the race. We should have gone sooner! We barely made it to the start line before the race started. I think we had 30 seconds to spare and our watches were still locating satellites! I had decided before the race that I would be running 3/1 intervals and my watch needed to locate before I could start them. Right before crossing the start line my watch found the satellite and I was off. I made the rookie mistake of starting out too fast. My first mile was a 9:46/mile. I quickly regretted that. Especially because of my lack of training. I finally settled into a more "doable" pace of 11:30/mile. I am by no-means fast. I will probably never run an 8 minute mile and that's ok. However, I do feel that if I had trained better I could have at least kept my pace around 11/mile.
Miles 1-4 were great! I was cold but I had my Under Armour on and a running jacket. I had also purchased full length compression pants and a fleece head band to wear for the occasion. I was in the groove. Around mile 5 I started wishing that the race was over and wondering where the turn around would be. I was sad that I wasn't able to appreciate the beautiful course I was on! It was a breath-taking run around the water. Yes, it was cold but the sun was shining! Not too many fans were out supporting us, which was a let down but we made it through either way. Between miles 5-8 there were rolling hills and one large incline. I was expecting a relatively flat course and that's pretty much what I got. That was a nice change from my usual routes.
Around 6.5 we turned around and started heading back. I was so glad! It was not fun anymore for me. This was all self inflicted because I didn't train well. And I hate the fact that I wasn't able to enjoy it. I saw my family along the way at mile 1.5, mile 4.5 and again at mile 9. It was nice to see their faces and hear them rooting for me to finish. I had all but given up and each time they urged me to keep moving.
By the time I reached mile 12 I had slowed down to a very slow 13/mile. I was tired, my feet hurt, my thighs were numb from the cold and I was ready to be done. My little brother showed up at the mile 13 to usher me in, taking pictures the whole time. That last .1 mile was the hardest and also the best! I was so glad to be done and proud that I finished! I crossed the finish line and they announced my name! So proud! I received my medal from an adorable little boy and had my chip timer cut off my shoe. Once I was wrapped in my silver blanket I grabbed a bagel and made a beeline for my car. I was SO ready to go home and take a nap!
I am now 3 days post race and am still a little sore. I did strain a ligament or something in my left foot because of the grade we had to run on. It is the part of my body that hurts the most at this point. I have taken many Aleve tablets and slathered myself numerous times with Ben Gay and Biofreeze. I was pleasantly surprised that I did not get any blisters on my arches this time. I have suffered from them in the past. This time around I bought some Body Glide and it worked like a charm! I also consumed 4 GU packets during the race. First one at 3.5 at the aid station and then every couple of miles from there.
The morale to this story is two parts. The first part is to make sure that you properly train for a half marathon. It is not a short race that one can simply expect to show up and just "do". I am certain that I would have ran it faster and I would be less sore if I had some longer runs under my belt in the weeks leading up to the race. The second part is that the human will is so much stronger than muscle. Though I was under trained, I was DETERMINED to conquer this race and finish. And finish I did! I not only finished but I beat my Personal Record by nearly 5 minutes. I can only imagine how much more it would have been.
My next race is January 26, 2013. It is the Winter Runnerland Half Marathon. It is a virtual run that is put on by my running group Moms Run This Town. Though it is virtual, there are several of us that are going to run it together. Solidarity!
Red Kisses,
Krissy
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