running a half marathon

I survived my first half marathon!!

Not gonna lie…it was ROUGH. I was doing okay until about mile 9 and then I hit my wall. The temperature was dropping, the wind was brutal and my leg muscles were tightening by the minute, but thanks to a new friend, I made it all 13.1 miles! We both wanted to cry when we crossed the finish line, but we held it together. I couldn’t have done it without my accidental running partner and I’m so thankful that fate intervened.

Before the race, I thought, “I just want to get this over with. I’m never signing up for anything longer than a 5k ever again!”

Races are addicting though. I’m proud of myself for finishing, but part of me says, “You did great, but you can do better!”

So, now I’m thinking, “Never say never!” 😉

Tomorrow is the day! In 12hrs I’ll be at the starting line of my first half marathon.

(I think I’m gonna throw up)

I haven’t trained.

Like at all.

I’ve done 2-3 mile spurts here and there, but that’s it. And I’m not fast by any stretch of the imagination.

This isn’t me. I don’t run long distances without proper training! When I signed up at the beginning of the year I had a training plan in place, but because it was so far away, I procrastinated. <—— THAT is definitely me.

I thought about just not going. But I don’t want to be a quitter. I’ve quit a lot of things in my life and I know that I’ll be disappointed with myself if I don’t at least try.

I succeeded in sufficiently psyching myself up to run/walk it and while I wasn’t necessarily feeling confident, I felt, “I can do this! It’s gonna hurt. I’m going to be slow. But I got this.”

Today was packet pick up day. I’ve had butterflies in my stomach for the past 72 hrs knowing that D-day is coming. When I picked up my race bib, two thoughts kept bouncing around in my head like ping pong balls.

1. While checking out the competition (I should mention that I know for a fact that you cannot tell how well someone is going to do in a race by looking at their outward appearance, however, the irrational side of me was ignoring this little detail) I thought, “I think I can keep up with some of these ladies!”

2. While checking out the merchandise and gear at the expo, I started to hyperventilate. “Holy crap. 13.1 miles. That’s not like a 5k, Katie! That’s THIRTEEN POINT FREAKING ONE miles! I can’t do this! What the hell was I thinking?! I’m gonna die tomorrow!”

I’ve been such a hypochondriac and drama queen for the past 24hrs. I’m ready to get this race over with. It’s time to suck it up buttercup! It’s time to go eat my obligatory carb meal and get ready for an early wake up call.

Wish me luck! I’m definitely gonna need it!

#MicroblogMondays // 02

Run Like a Diva