Training Week 2

Hello my wonderful readers! I hope your week is off to a lovely start. Two days ago, on Sunday I wrapped up the second week of training for my half marathon. The program was exactly the same as week 1 (read about week 1 here) in terms of distance requirements. 

Tuesday's 3 mile run was normal and good, as was Wednesday's 2 miler. I finished the 2 mile run in 21:23 which is pretty quick for me, so I was really happy with that time.  Thursday's 3 mile run was TERRIBLE. I've decided Thursday runs just suck no matter what. Even if my outfit fits perfectly and the weather is gorgeous, by Thursday I am just way too pooped to have a good run.  Also, as part of my training program, I've given up all alcohol Monday through Thursday, so by Thursday all I want is to drink a big glass of wine and sit on my butt (SIDE NOTE: That's all I want right now too, and its Tuesday morning). On Thursday I STRUGGLED, and I mean A LOT. I thought I was going to fall over and I literally limped my way back to our house. I finished in 37:56, and I had to walk several times. (Insert sad face here).  So same as week 1, here I was, facing the daunting task of running 4 miles on Sunday and feeling less than confident after my Thursday 3 miler.

Sunday morning dawned dreary, warm and humid. I rolled out of bed at around 10am and looked out the window to see a rainy day. Feeling slightly less than thrilled, I figured it was best to just get my run over with before it started to really storm. So I went outside, and I started to run.

When I hit the mile 1 marker, I felt really good, but I knew that I usually struggled most between miles 1 and 2 so I didn't want to be overly confident. It was drizzling which was a new experience for me. I had never run in the rain, and surprisingly it was nice. It wasn't raining so hard that I was miserable and luckily my feet stayed dry, but the light drizzle on my face and body felt refreshing. As I ran between miles 1 and 2 (the most difficult stretch for me because I'm already getting tired and still have such a long way to go), I thought about my upcoming 25th birthday and reflected on all the lessons I had learned in my 24th year on earth. And those thoughts of life lessons and milestones pushed me through. I hit mile 2. I was half way done. I was feeling GOOD. 

The rain continued for the next two miles and I thought about my marriage, my strengths and weaknesses as a wife. I thought about my overwhelming love for my husband, and how grateful I am for him. I thought about myself as an individual, my strengths and weaknesses as a woman, independent of who I am with my husband. I thought about my crazy idea to run 13.1 miles. I thought about my fears of not being able to finish the race. And I ran. And I didn't stop. For 4 WHOLE MILES, I ran. I didn't walk. In the rain. 

 It is so hard to explain, especially in writing, the feelings I felt as I finished that run, but I'll try.  

Less than 2 years ago, I was newly engaged and determined to be a "skinny bride". I decided I was going to work out, and as part of my workout routine, I was going to run. So one night in the first week of December 2011, I went for a run, and Reid went with me. It was cold and dark outside and not even 30 seconds into it, I wanted to stop. Reid was cheering me on, telling me I could do it. "Just make it to the stop sign babe, you're doing great! Just to the stop sign!" I wanted to scream "I can't make it to the stop sign you freakishly healthy and in shape man!!!" but I didn't have enough breath to say a single word, let alone scream an entire sentence, so I didn't say anything. I made it to the stop sign, barely. Afterwards my chest hurt and I couldn't stop coughing. I didn't know how far I'd gone, but it felt like I'd run FOREVER. A few months later I mapped that route. I had only run 1/10th of a mile. Like literally less than 1/2 of a lap around a track. 

Fast forward to the first week of December 2013 and I'll be only days away from my first ever half marathon. I can't even satisfactorily explain to myself how I got from where I was then to where I am now. I just did it. And you know what, there is still a lot that can happen between now and December 8th. There is still a lot of training I have to do. And I know there is a HUGE difference between running 4 miles and running 13.1 miles. For all I know, I could trip and break my ankle today and be done running for months. But two years ago I could barely run 1/10th of a mile, and today I can run 4. I feel amazing. Proud. Healthy. Alive. Young. Energized. I've accomplished something big already, and I am not even close to stopping.

    

Thanks,

Jesse