Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU friends, family... thank you UNIVERSE for your love and support of Dale and my goal to raise $1,000 for Donate Life SC. With your help Dale and I not only ran 13.1 miles, we raised $1,156 for our cause! And it all felt amazing!
Dale was a speed demon and finished in 1:45:01. He was so kind to wait nearly 45 minutes for me to finish at 2:27:41! I certainly set no PRs during that race, except for maybe a fundraising PR, but I met my goal of finishing in under 2:30:00, bum knee be damned!
The race itself was lovely - cool and sunny. I ran the first 8 miles with my friend Sam and her cousin Melissa, so that first half flew by! Unfortunately at mile 8 my knee pain kicked in and I was forced to walk/run until mile 10, where my 6th ibuprofen kicked in. With the OTC meds and my runner's high, I finished the last three miles strong and beat my goal of finishing in 2:30:00.
Looking back, my training helped me through a very transitional point in my life, and it kept me focused and positive. It helped me adopt a better attitude about my body, too. I no longer cared as much about how I looked, but rather I cared more about how my body functioned and what it was capable of. After much trial and error, I learned how to fuel properly. I nurtured the mental strength it takes to run a long distance. I bonded with old friends through the process and felt so loved and supported by them. What a joyful experience it was!
Since it's been so beneficial to my mental, emotional, and physical state, I've decided to stay in training mode. After taking one week off from running entirely, I'll return to it tonight and begin training to be competitive in a 5k distance. 8-minute miles, here I come!
Dale and I at Fluor Field after completing the Spinx Run Fest Half Marathon!
13.1, baby! And a medal to prove it! That sucker was heavy...
At one point someone asked me why I was carrying my phone...so I could track my mileage, duh!!
All for now, more to come.
-A
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