Nine months ago I ran my first ever half marathon.
Nine months ago, after months of training, I crossed the finish line with the accomplishment of not walking or even stopping during my race.
Now, nine months later, half marathon training starts yet again..
For nine whole months I did myself a huge disservice by not lifting a foot to run anything over 2 miles in distance at any given time.
I can count on my fingers how many times I ran over the last nine months *looks at fingers* 3. I ran three times.
And even with all my physical activities – hiking, swimming, yoga – during the last nine months, nothing compares to distance running and none of those activities (except maybe yoga because of breathing techniques) could have prepared me for what I experienced today.
Today, nine months post my 13.1 mile run, I ran 3 miles and thought I was going to drop down dead. This was my first run in my half marathon training program.
It was painful, Fam. I got through one mile kinda sorta okay. I knew I was running way slower than I have in a really long time, but I figured I could keep that pace for the next two miles. WRONG! My ass was stopping just about every .15 miles on the last mile and that’s a fact. My physical fitness wasn’t where it needed to be (read: I’m out of shape!), but I am more determined than what I thought I would be because when I say I wanted to throw my hands up and say “EFF ALL THIS!” I wanted to, but how could I really look myself in the mirror and be okay with that?
And though I would stop here and there to catch my breath and make smaller goals and give myself pep talks – “Just run from this pole to this pole without stopping, P. You’ve got this – you’re going to get to three miles today!” – I didn’t ever walk. I was DETERMINED to run the whole way and that’s just what I did. For that I am grateful.
So I clocked in at a whopping 36 minutes – about 12 mins per mile – but to me it’s better than walking and wayyyyyy better than sitting on my tush wishing I had gotten up to run! Did I mention the race takes place in 3 months!!!? So I need to get to work!
I said all of that to say it’s never too late to start. We all fall short at times, but we can always get back out there and make things happen. It may not be how it was before, but with time, dedication, and consistency we can be better than we have ever been.
Naturally my goal for this half is to be better than I was in the last, but more realistically it is to finish strong without walking or stopping.
What goals have you sat on and need to revisit? How are YOU going to make it happen?
