What's Next

While training for my half I really neglected strength training. So now I really want to set my focus back on that while keeping up some of the mileage I have built up in running.

Earlier this year I completed the Mom's into Fitness Pretty Fierce: Lean Out program. It's a 60 day 11 DVD program. I absolutely loved the program and had great results. So I plan to start that up next Monday.

I love the program because it has some flex days and I can sub in some runs. I think the program will really help me grow stronger as a runner as well.

I signed up to join a local running group that is training for the Inaugural Rock 'n' Roll Raleigh Half Marathon in April 2014. The training starts January 5th. I'm really excited to work with the trainer and to meet new people. I'm hoping to find a running buddy especially for these short winter days.

I'm really pushing myself to get outside my comfort zone and try new things.

I did it! 13.1 Miles

I woke up on Saturday feeling excited and a little nervous. I was more worried about the cold as it was around 28-30 degrees when I woke up. The week prior had been a gorgeous 60 degrees. So I had not trained in colder weather and I was nervous about what I should wear.

I ended up wearing:

• C9 by Champion® Women's Compression Tights from Target
• C9 by Champion® Women's Premium Skort from Target
• My Kudzu Green Sport Tek T-Shirt from work
• Oiselle Running Women's Solid Arm Warmers from Amazon
• My green light weight jacket with the thumb holes
• My Brooks Ghost 6 from my local Running Store Off n' Running
• Armpocket
• Ultimate Direction Access Waist Pack

I thought I'd end up shedding the jacket but it was just too cold and I ended up being very comfortable with it on.

The week before the race I started becoming very nervous about the hills. I had trained on some hills but I was not sure I had done enough. Luckily they ended up not being so bad. I tried to not focus on them and instead would pick runners near me that I wanted to pass. It became a fun game and with every runner I passed the more confident I became and the faster the miles went by.

Greensboro Half Marathon Elevation Map

Race Map

My goal going into the race was to finish in 2 hours 15 minutes. Which would be a pace of  about 10 minutes 18 seconds per mile. Which was very reasonable from my training and gave some extra time for the hills.

I ended up finishing in 2 hours 6 minutes and 43 seconds! I was super proud of that finish. I did have a secret dream of doing it in 2 hours but hey this was my first and you always have to have goals. Plus the hills definitley were a factor. Although I will say I did a pretty good job of keeping a consistent pace even with the hills.

According MapMyRun my race splits were:

Distance	Pace
1 Mile	09:37 min/mi
2 Mile	09:38 min/mi
3 Mile	09:42 min/mi
4 Mile	09:50 min/mi
5 Mile	09:24 min/mi
6 Mile	09:12 min/mi
7 Mile	09:31 min/mi
8 Mile	09:16 min/mi
9 Mile	09:29 min/mi
10 Mile	09:43 min/mi
11 Mile	09:44 min/mi
12 Mile	09:47 min/mi
13 Mile	09:37 min/mi
13.3 Mile	08:20 min/mi

One of my favorite parts of the race was having my family there to cheer me on. My In-laws were visiting and came a day early so they could make the race. That meant a lot to me. My husband and daughter were of course there. I saw them at the start, around mile 6 and at the finish. Most of the pictures were taken by my husband.

I was also surprised at the finish line by my boss and his daughter. I veered over and gave him a high five right before crossing the finish line. It felt awesome to have all the support.

A highlight for me was around mile 7. I was running along when all of a sudden I was passed by the winner of the marathon who was followed by a cop car. For him it was around mile 20. It was so cool seeing him fly by doing twice the distance I was doing. The marathoners started 45 minutes before the half marathoners. He won the race doing the 26.2 miles in 2 hours 30 minutes 30 seconds! It was amazing to watch the elite runners. Eight Marathoners finished in under 3 hours.

The winner of the half marathon finished it in 1 hour 12 minutes.

I have to say it was a pretty perfect experience. All my training paid off as I had no problems completing the distance. I felt great the whole time. I was able to beat my original goal. I had a great cheering team. The weather was cold but ended up being a nice temperature for racing once I got going. The event had a lot of wonderful volunteers. I'm so glad I committed to doing this.

Here were my finial results:
Finish percentile is top 41%
Age group percentile is top 37%

What's next? I'm thinking the Inaugural Rock 'n' Roll Raleigh Half Marathon with a goal of 2 hours :)

Ready or Not

I ended up running 3.35 miles last night on my own. I felt pretty good. It was a hilly route to help get warmed up for Saturday. I'm a little nervous about the hill profile for the race. There's some pretty large hills in the beginning and a big one towards the end.

Greensboro Half Marathon Elevation Chart

I love this!

 I'm trying not to put a lot of pressure on myself. I know my goal for a first half marathon should be to just complete it. Yet I keep having this time in my head that I would really like to get. I think I need to step back and just relax (easier said then done).

Tonight I am going to run the same route I ran last night for my final run before Saturday. I may add a street to make it a 4 miler. Heck I might even change it up and do a 4 miler I used to do at the beginning of training. I will see how I feel after work. I plan to just enjoy it and work on my form a bit. I also need to get my head in the right place.

After my run I'm going to put together my play list for Saturday. I'll post it tomorrow. I have been asking for song recommendations from friends and am excited to see what I come up with. I know I am going to need some good motivational tunes especially for that last big hill at mile 10.

Tomorrow is the Race Expo / Packet Pickup. This sh*t is getting real!

3 Days....

Yikes, 3 days until my first half. I am both nervous and excited. I have not run since Sunday so I will definitley have to get my run on tonight. I plan to do an easy 5K pushing my bean in the jogger. I'll do a couple hills.

Monday was a scheduled rest day. Yesterday I was scheduled to run 3 miles. I was still a little sore from my long run on Sunday. Plus as a last minute trip, we went and met my Uncle for dinner. He is on a business trip about an hour from us in Chapel Hill. He lives in Texas so we never get to see him. So I don't regret skipping my run.

My legs feel good today. So now I just need to do some easy runs to keep them limber. I'm so happy they feel good today. I was beginning to worry that I over did it on my long run on Sunday.

On sale - 2 for $9

One of my favorite ways to treat sore legs is to take an Epsom Salt bath. I bought some more at Walgreens and came across an Epsom Salt Lavender Soak. Let me tell you it was amazing. It smelt so good. It also left my skin nice and soft. What a happy surprise it was.

Well I'm off to get some water. I've been bad about drinking it lately. I've got to make sure I'm good and hydrated for the big day.

3 DAYS! YIKES!!!!

Last Long Run

Well I did it. I finished my last long run in training for my first half marathon. It felt great! I set out to do 10 miles and around 5 miles decided to make it 12. I just felt really good and the day was a beautiful crisp fall day. The leaves are finally starting to change in North Carolina so the view was great. There were a lot of other runners on the trail. I ran near two ladies that ran the same distance as me which was cool. I wonder if they are running next weeks race too.

12 miles is the farthest I have ever ran and this was my second time doing it. I've read about a lot of people training to 10 miles and having the last 3 miles on race day be really hard for them. So I definitely wanted to get as close to 13.1 as I could while training. I think more for the mental aspect than the physical.

Yesterday's long run was a confidence booster. I ran around my goal pace and even impressed myself. I think I'm as ready as I will ever be.

After my run I decided to drive the half marathon course. I'm glad that I did because there are some nasty hills on the course and I'm glad to see where they are. I think it would be mentally hard not to know what to expect. Especially since a lot of the hills are in the beginning. I think I'd start to wonder if the whole course is like that. Luckily I drove it and know that it is not.

Last night my husband wanted to drive the course so he could scope out the best places to cheer me on. Which I found very sweet. While we were driving it he told me he was very proud of me and he can't believe how long 13.1 miles is. He joked that he was tired just driving the course, haha. He told me which hills he thought would be hard.

I'm really excited but starting to get nervous. I'm trying not to think of the hills and how they are going to affect my run. I just need to trust my training and go into the race with a positive "can do" attitude.

"I Can and  I WILL!"

Virtual Marathon: Running 26.2 miles in 31 Days!

This month I participated in the Joggermom Cancer Run Virtual Marathon. In October you have to run 26.2 miles in as many days as it takes you. Normally I would have thought that it would be hard to run 26.2 miles in a month, but with my half marathon training I finished it in a week :)

I had a great time! 

Marathon Breakdown:
10/01/2013 - 5.21 Miles in 49:56 (9:35 pace)
10/03/2013 - 6.18 Miles in 58:03 (9:24 pace)
10/05/2013 - 3.27 Miles in 32:14 (9:52 pace) <-- Women's Only 5K
10/06/2013 - 12.01 Miles in 2:05:30 (10:27 pace)

TOTAL: 26.7 miles in 4:27:43 (about a 10 minute mile pace)

Two of these runs were firsts for me.

1. It was the first time I ran a race pushing my daughter in her jogger. 
2. I did a 12 mile run, which is my longest run to date. It is the highest mileage I will run before my half.

Women's Only 5K, 1st time racing with my jogger :)

12 mile run! Longest run so far.

Today I am 3 miles away from completing my second marathon in October.

10 Days until my first half marathon! Yikes!!!!

Bikram Yoga Love

Last week was a tough training week for me. My body just felt tired. I struggled on each of my runs and was starting to get a little discouraged. Luckily my long run on Sunday was a good run and renewed my dedication to my training. It's funny how one run can turn it around. Just goes to show you just gotta keep going. You will have some good days and some bad.

Ok, getting off topic.... My body was so sore last week so I decided I needed to do a yoga class. Earlier this year I had purchased a Groupon for a 30 day unlimited Bikram Yoga Class pass. I went many times and really enjoyed it. My favorite feeling was at the end of class when you are soaked with sweat. I feel like I worked hard and really cleansed my body of some toxins. Then to top it off my whole body feels so relaxed and stretched. Not to mention it feels great to improve on the different poses every week.

So when my body was telling me it was tight and needed some love I decided it needed Bikram Yoga. So I purchased a 5 class pass and decided to commit my Wednesday cross train day to Bikram Yoga. The 5 classes get me through to the Wednesday following my half. So it will be perfect.

I had my first class in a long time last Wednesday. It was fantastic. I was happy to find that even though I had not been for 2 month my body still knew the poses. I could tell I had regressed a little in my flexibility but not as much as I had thought.

I'm happy I have committed to add it to my training. It is great for the mind and body. I can't wait to  go again tomorrow.

"Yoga never fails to reward honest effort." ~ Bikram