When it comes to running, I definitely have a love-hate relationship.  It takes a lot to get me going and even when I’m out there I usually am hating life for the first mile or so. That being said, I spent a lot of time training for my first marathon in the spring and summer of 2016.  Did I run the marathon? No. Did I try my best? Of course I did!

When it comes to things happening outside of our control, we need to learn how to accept and move on.  After months of training I became sick with bronchitis so badly that I couldn’t breathe or function even in my daily life.  I had to call it quits on my training and tearfully decided against running my first marathon that October.  Instead, I signed up for the Rock n Roll Las Vegas in November of 2016. I thought that I would have enough time to heal and be ready to run again after a couple of months.

While I stayed dedicated to my training for the marathon when I had a plan, after everything fell through and I chose the half instead I figured I could half-ass it as I was already in pretty good shape.  Did I run much in the month leading up to the half? No. And it changed my life.

Although the Las Vegas Rock n Roll is a fairly easy course (relatively of course), it was the hardest run of my life. I was in so much pain and didn’t think I was going to be able to make it to the finish. I thought, at the time, that signing up for a half would be a good excuse for a mini getaway, but didn’t realize the implications of not training.

The trip itself was AMAZING of course.  We went to shows (cirque!!!) and ate amazing food. We even won gambling for the 5 minutes we had patience for it. We walked miles and miles before and after the half marathon to see all of the sites and lights of the beautiful strip.  While the half was a good excuse for a vacation, it wasn’t a good excuse to sign up for something I was ready to commit to.

As I was running the half marathon, I realized how completely out of shape I was.  I could barely even run the first mile without walking some. I was slower that I had been in over a year and only saw the miles before me as pain.  Starting out a race by counting down miles IMMEDIATELY is probably not a good sign of things to come. While I had to walk much of the “race” and was in excruciating pain, I did finish and proudly wore my medal for the battle I fought on the course. Mind over matter.

I NEVER want to feel that way when running again. You should always follow a training program leading up to your longer races. Don’t end up like me, hobbling through hell while trying to enjoy your surroundings.  That being said, I’m ready to commit to another round of marathon training. Rock n Roll Seattle, here I come! I see you 26.2!