US Half Marathon 2 "The Other Half"

I have not felt the compulsion to blog in a while, but today is pretty appropriate!

I think it just hit me maybe 30 minutes ago that I finished my first half marathon today - at a time that was extremely close to my goal. I was aiming for 2 hours and finished at 2:04. Given that my classmate and I stopped to pee, I subtract 3 minutes from that time.. and there we go. Also, no toilet paper in the porta potty - I feel like a beast.

There is a pretty decent story behind all of this. The half marathon, not the porta potty.

Before last January, I had never run more than 1 mile at a time. I was on track in high school, but the farthest distance I ever "raced" was 300 meters. To put this into perspective, 400 meters is a quarter of a mile. I randomly decided to go running with a friend who used to do cross country, and before I knew it, we had run 3.8 miles. It all started from there. I started running that same 3.8 mi route a couple of times a week and got my roommates into running too. Then in April, I "ran" Bay to Breakers, a 10K. What I didn't know was that the point isn't to actually run it - you're supposed to get drunk, wear ridiculous costumes, or nothing at all. That was the farthest distance I had ever ran and I averaged 11 min/mile. I blame it on stopping to gawk at the bison in Golden Gate Park (I know, wtf right?).

After that, I signed up for the Nike Women's half marathon in November, but I didn't really start training until September. Since it was kind of late to start training, I bumped my mileage rapidly every week (way more than I was supposed to because I was trying to cram it into the limited amount of time I had). Then when I finished a 12 mi run, I realized that my foot was in a lot of pain. It wasn't until later that I realized I could barely walk. It turned out to be a stress fracture or tendonitis, which meant I was out for the race. Not to mention that I ended up with acid reflux for about 7 days. I was SUPER disappointed and in a moment (or many) of insanity and stubbornness I considered running it anyway.. but I knew it wasn't worth worsening my injury for one race. I even had a classmate call me "weaksauce" (Ironically, he's out for the count currently because he has a horrible horrible stress fracture of some sort) and someone suggest that I just get a cortisone shot and run it anyway. It was extremely frustrating because not only had I TRAINED, but running had become some form of stress release for me. In my disappointment and frustration, I'm pretty sure I resembled a menstruating rhino for a week. My roommates ran the race and I went along for the ride and sold my ticket to a woman on Craigslist for double the amount I paid for it.

I went home that same day and signed up for the US Half in April. Then I waited. And waited. When I felt okay again (this was probably in November), I started running (obviously talked to my sports medicine doctor first, who has probably seen tons of stubborn athletes). Half a mile of running, half a mile of walking. Then 1 mile for 2 weeks. Then 2 miles for 2 weeks. I probably got up to 3 miles before winter break and didn't train at all during that time. All of this was on the indoor track, where I knew I wouldn't get injured as easily.

I went to some fancy running store called Fleet Feet, where they watched me run and matched me to a pair of shoes. I had been running in shoes that were too small and too old. I went up from a size 7.5 to 8.5. After blowing $100 on new shoes, I bought appropriate running socks too.

I did a lot of cross training through BodyRock and when I got back to Davis in January, I made up my entire training schedule up until the half marathon, using a combination of the NWM and some random half marathon training schedule. Btw, I think the NWM schedule is kind of stupid because they bump up the mileage like CRAZY and at one point you do a long run of about 16 miles.. in which case, I ask why? I learned a few things during my injured state - don't bump your mileage more than 10% a week and you don't need to run a half marathon in order to train for one. My schedule was mostly 4 mile runs 2-3 times a week with one long run on the weekends. My long runs started out at 6 miles. Then 7 miles. Then 8. You get the idea. I stopped at 9. I ended up running at the school arboretum a lot, which was about 4 miles long and had some sort of hills/mixed terrain. I would sometimes run at lunch and then just spend the next class period furiously stuffing my face.

I learned a lot about myself too, like giving myself sufficient time to rest before attempting any long runs. Don't go rock climbing the day before, etc. Wait 3 hours after eating before running or you will cramp up like you're giving birth to triplets. Breathe through your nose until you can't bear it anymore, then you can breathe through your mouth. You have a cramp? Breathe through it.

It became a really great form of stress release from school. It got to the point where if I didn't run, I was a cranky bitch.

Then came the week before the half marathon. I loaded up on a ridiculous amount of proteins and carbs. The day before the race (I guess yesterday.. ha, funny) I ate 2 bagels, 4 eggs, a ton of gatorade, a Cliff bar, etc. I listened to some of my running playlist to make sure that it was working. I trimmed my toenails so that they wouldn't fall off again. As a side note, who the hell loses 2 toenails over the course of 2 months? It's just not right. I chugged a ton of water/Gatorade before going to bed because I knew I wouldn't be able to have ANYTHING in my stomach if I was planning on doing the run mostly cramp-free.

I woke up in the morning and took an antacid.. and that was all I had. Started the race not knowing what to expect. The beginning was mostly downhill, which I was afraid would lull me into a false sense of security.. and I still think that. It was a beautiful course and too bad I couldn't fully appreciate it. The run on the Golden Gate bridge to and back was my favorite part. It was pretty congested, though. I had a classmate who did the US Half back in November and apparently they had closed off one of the bridge paths, so people were going to AND from on the same side.. sounds like a nightmare. I refused any sort of liquid until mile 10, when I was completely dehydrated. Volunteers were passing out small cups of water and Gatorade. At that point, 1/3 of it went into my mouth (I almost choked), 1/3 onto my front, and a 1/3 on the ground.

Quite a few hills but I had sort of trained, so they weren't awful. But I was not prepared for the asshole hill at the 12.5 mile mark. I swear when I got to the top I was so high on endorphins that I thought I saw Jesus. There comes a point when you hit "Runner's High" and feel super charged up and everything becomes more vibrant (in color). It's kind of a weird sensation. Maybe it's just me. Then I finally saw the finish and just pushed on through... and it was over.

I honestly still cannot believe that I finished this race. It's the longest distance I've EVER attempted and I managed to reach my goal. I feel like I had been training forever, but it had really only been 5 months. I can't imagine what professional athletes must feel like when they train for the Olympics.. and then don't make the cut. It's ridiculous.

So that's my story. Also, post-run diarrhea REALLY sucks.

Hanging up the running shoes for a bit, but sales for the Nike Women's Half are available starting tomorrow. :)