I have run for exercise pretty regularly for a long time, but never more than 2 or 3 miles. In college I ran 5 miles once, and that is as far as I had EVER run before training for this race. Pushing past that 5 miles feels like a major accomplishment, and running a marathon has long been a life goal of mine. Now I know how to get there.
In a way this makes me feel like anything is possible. Seriously. All it took was setting a goal. I have put this off for years and then just decided to sign up for it. Having a goal, especially a public goal, made me stick with it. I never considered not following through with it, even after I injured my hand and was in a cast and brace for 12 weeks. Major bummer, by the way.
Running 6.2 miles may not seem like a big scary endeavor, but it certainly was a stepping outside of my comfort zone. And I was rewarded in many ways. I'm a bit braver now, and more willing to try new things. I'm also in better shape, and I have developed a stronger friendship with my running partner, Jodi. She was the key to making this training great. We started doing long runs together on the weekends, and we would get so engaged in conversation that the miles would just fly by. I've never had a running partner like that and I love it. We ran the entire race together too, and that made it all the more fun.
In a way this makes me feel like anything is possible. Seriously. All it took was setting a goal. I have put this off for years and then just decided to sign up for it. Having a goal, especially a public goal, made me stick with it. I never considered not following through with it, even after I injured my hand and was in a cast and brace for 12 weeks. Major bummer, by the way.
Running 6.2 miles may not seem like a big scary endeavor, but it certainly was a stepping outside of my comfort zone. And I was rewarded in many ways. I'm a bit braver now, and more willing to try new things. I'm also in better shape, and I have developed a stronger friendship with my running partner, Jodi. She was the key to making this training great. We started doing long runs together on the weekends, and we would get so engaged in conversation that the miles would just fly by. I've never had a running partner like that and I love it. We ran the entire race together too, and that made it all the more fun.
The highlight of the race was seeing these guys cheering me on with one mile to go. Love them and their sweet little signs!
I'm hooked. Maybe a half marathon next?
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