Probably the craziest goal I set for 2015 was to run a half marathon. I mean really, isn't that something people do in their twenties? Certainly not when they're approaching...ahem...forty! The way I see it, I can't change careers. I am a mom for life. I can't buy a sports car. I can't afford it and where would I put the kids? So, instead, I set out to run 13.1 continuous miles. I didn't tell anyone this, but had my sights set on 9:30 or faster miles. I thought it would be nice to run somewhere new, so David planned a route for me from our house to the Back Bay and around the 10-mile Back Bay loop. I was a little nervous even though I had printed directions and my cell phone that I would get lost. (I have the worst sense of direction ever!) Sure, enough, I took a few wrong turns and had to back-track. I even had to call David once cause I missed a turn and ran into the marina. In the end, I did make it and ran the whole way, though it was much harder than I expected. The last two miles were especially difficult because I just wanted to be done running, but I set my mind on hymns and praise songs and those carried me through those last miles!
It took a little bit of work to calculate my time because of a little GPS glitch when I ran into the marina, but David says I finished the 13.1 miles in 2:01 moving time, or 9:14 miles! Yay! Better than I hoped for, helped by the pancake-flat terrain at the Back Bay!
I did learn a very important lesson from running my first half marathon. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. I didn't, and the recovery was miserable. I had three vomiting sessions and severe digestive issues for a full 24 hours! I had to take a bath, then a nap, and nearly missed taking Mary to a Build-A-Bear birthday party. So, if you have your sights set on that half marathon, drink yo' water!! I will not be defeated. I want to train and run the same route with proper hydration and not get sick!
