Race Day Eve!

Hi all!

   I figured I should do one last post before the race. The next time you hear from me, I will have lots of race day pictures and a recap! :)

   Tonight, my parents, my aunt, and my cousin all came from New York for the race. It is really overwhelming to know that they came all the way here just to see me stumble across the finish line, sweaty and disoriented. I know that having them there will be such great motivation to keep going. Today, Tim and I spent the morning shopping for a big party that my in-laws are throwing at the house after the race to celebrate me running the half marathon. It's really crazy to know that so many people are cheering me on. My nervousness and anxiety for the race is quickly turning to excitement.

Shoes and race uniform ready to go! Please don't judge my messy dresser.....

 I feel ready to race! I have almost 3 hours of music on my iPod, my clothes are laid out and I have drank more water in the past week that I did in the previous two months combined ;) I feel sentimental, because only one short year ago I was running .6 miles before I had to stop. It's really amazing to set your mind to something, and then actually see it staring you in the face. I visualized myself finishing the race in my mind a million times, and cried almost every single time. Fortunately, I don't think I'll have enough moisture left in me to actually cry tomorrow at the finish line. Which is good, because I don't want to be THAT girl.

  I'm sorry that this post is a little rambling, but like I said, I'm pretty sentimental and overwhelmed and tired and excited and every single thing in between right now. It's actually pretty awesome. I hope to share a great deal of pictures with you tomorrow (or maybe the next day....) of me before, during, and after the race.

 I will leave you with the reason for all of this. My Uncle Tom. I know that when I feel like stopping tomorrow, I just have to feel the breeze and know it is him pushing me along. We love you and miss you.

Lessons Learned!

Well, since I'm writing this, you all know that I did indeed survive the 12 mile run! Woop woop!

I did survive the run somehow, and learned a few lessons along the way. I think that these are important for anyone looking to run longer distances to know, and I thought I would share them. Im sure that lots of other runners have learned these lessons, either the hard way or the easy way, but I figured I would share :)

Lesson #1: Sports Bras are worth it.
If you're anything like me, you walk past the sports bra display in Dicks and laugh. "Fifty bucks for a sports bra?! You have to be kidding me."

No, sadly. They are not kidding you.

During my run, the last thing on my mind was my sports bra. Afterwards, when I jumped in the shower, something awful happened. The hot water hit the skin on my back and I honestly for a second thought I was dying. Turns out I wasn't dying, but the skin on my back had totally chafed! I have no idea how this happened. My cheap-o cotton blend sports bra had caused the skin on my back to literally rub off. First it stung like a sunburn, and now it itches like no other! Bottom line: Invest in the good sports bra, unless you want your skin to rub off. And Im not sure how much you want to mess with that, especially in the bra region :)


Lesson #2: iPods are a great idea.
Two hours and forty three minutes alone with my own thoughts was more than I needed. 

Lesson #3: When you're sure your body has had enough, and couldn't possibly go any father, you can put one foot in front of the other and keep going.
I hit a wall at mile 10.5. I was starting to fall pretty far behind my running partners, and I was insanely far behind Tim and our coach, Tom. Coach Tom ended up coming all the way back to run with me, and thank goodness he did. In someone's front yard in Southport, I had what I think is an Exercise Induced Bronchospasm. My chest got tight, and I couldn't breathe without making this awful noise. I was able to breathe my way through it using some things I had learned in yoga. After a couple minutes of walking, I knew I should start to run again. And I somehow managed to get it together to run another 1.5 miles to the finish.



Lesson #4: Your running friends are more than just friends.
The friendships you make with the people you run with are unreal. You are instantly bonded with them. I know how close I feel with the girls I run with that I met through Team in Training. I instantly bonded with Coach Tom, too. He gave me so much advice and I am really very thankful for him. After our run, we hung out and ate fruit and bagels, drank chocolate milk, and told each other how awesome they were. Running friends are the best.


Here are the stats from this past run.

Distance: 12.04 miles 

Time: 2:43:50 

Pace: 13:36 (Slower than I'd like, but this includes where I stopped for my bronchospasm so I think I technically ran maybe closer to a 13 min mile)

Temperature: Beautiful, sunny, and upper 70s

Miles on my Kayanos: Honestly, I lost count. I have 107 miles on my watch, with a few runs I have done without my watch. Let's call it 120 miles :)

Half Marathon Countdown: 11 days!

Long Overdue Update!

Hi everyone!

Sorry that there has been such a lag in posts. Life has been crazy busy! I have still been running, and now the countdown to the marathon is on!! I figured I would bullet the updates so it would be easier to read.


1. So far, I have raised $1,310 in memory of my Uncle Tom for Team in Training! My goal is to raise $1,500 in his name, so I only have $190 to go. The deadline for donating is coming up soon, so I'm hoping I can make it in time.

2. Running has been going really well! Last weekend, I ran 10 miles in Milford with Tim, Kate, and Sarah. Coach Cindy was there with water stops and bananas and chocolate milk at the finish :) I was really, really happy to hit the 10 mile mark. Almost to 13! I stopped to walk a few times, but overall I was pretty happy. It took me 2 hours and 5 minutes to run the 10 miles. We have a long run next weekend of 12 miles, and then we have a short run after that. The weekend after that is the race! Holy cow! 

3. Countdown update: The race is THREE WEEKS from today! I can't wait.

Tonight, Tim's brother Josh came upstairs and mentioned that he was hoping to get a corner desk in his room. I immediately thought of the desk that my Uncle Tom hand made for me when I mentioned that I liked the desk in his daughter Jodi's room. I was really emotional for a minute to think about it in someone else's hands. But I feel happy knowing that even after his passing, my Uncle Tom's craftiness and generosity lives on. And it's moments like that that make me remember why I am doing what I am doing.

Talk to you all soon! Hopefully with an update after my 12 miler next weekend.

GO TEAM! :)