mamasinthegarden: Run a Half Marathon. Check.

Yesterday was race day. Over the past few months I went from barely being able to run 2 miles to completing a half marathon. And my training schedule has been less than stellar. I mean, to me--it worked out great. But I'm pretty sure no real runner would endorse a training program that has you running just one run per week...your long run. But, with work, life, the babe and everything else, that's all that I had time to do. And I actually think my body liked the fact that I didn't run it into the ground.

The weather was perfect. Warm enough that I wasn't cold in my shorts and t-shirt. Cool enough that I never felt hot. There was a light breeze that dried my sweat in the sun and gave me goosebumps in the shade. The course was beautiful. Scenic. A bit too hilly for my liking. Definitely hillier than I was anticipating {partly due to a last-minute need to re-route the course to account for a portion of a collapsed wall along the trail}. And there was a sea of people. I was never alone. The bands or solo performers along the course put up their best shot, I'm sure. Although there weren't many songs that really rocked. I got to see my cheering squad at the Start, Mile 3 and Mile 6 and the Finish. {There was a snafu with the shuttles, so unfortunately I didn't get to see them at Mile 9}. Considering the fact that I haven't run 13.1 miles since I ran my full marathon five years ago in Nashville, I'm pretty proud of myself. I ran the first half about 30 seconds per mile faster than my goal pace and the second half anywhere from 30 seconds-1 minute slower than goal pace. So it evened out and I was just a few minutes slower than my goal (which was a 10-minute mile pace). And overall, while sore, I'm not the kind of can't-even-roll-over-in-bed kind of sore that I was after my marathon.

Now, some photos of the event {unfortunately, the camera died as I came in to the finish, so there are no post-race pics of me...but I swear I finished. I have the medal to prove it.}