Those three little letters are making me feel a lot of ways this morning. First, let’s talk about my training for Disney marathon. I totally meant to train, but you know, life was busy. I think I got a solid four double digit long runs in, up to 17 miles. Not ideal, but I thought finishing would be doable. The night before the race, I got an email that we had yellow flag conditions due to high heat and humidity. On race morning, I met up with Stacy and we waited together patiently for almost two hours until Aaron showed up just minutes before the start and we all started the race together. Miles 1 & 2 - 10:06 & 9:30 I had a hard time getting to my pace due to course congestion. I was trying not to weave, so just slowed down a little bit. I also didn’t know exactly what “my pace” for the day was going to be, just trying to settle into anything that felt easy. This part of the course is dark and fairly uneventful other than a few characters. Miles 3-6 - 9:32, 9:29, 9:34, 9:31 MAGIC KINGDOM!! I have a hard time putting this part of the course into words, but I think magical works well. The crowd support and the views, and oh that turn onto Main Street USA when I can finally see the castle all lit up with Christmas lights. I just love this part so much! I was surprised the characters only had a handful of people in line for them; knowing now how my race turned out, I regret not stopping for some character pictures! Mile 7 - 9:54 Already feeling tired, and forced myself to slow the pace down. We ran past Grand Floridian, then Emmy and Jamie were waiting for me outside our hotel, Shades of Green. I gave that girlie the biggest kiss and kind of thought about how convenient it was that I could just stop right there and be done already. But I continued on. Mile 8 - 10:00 My knees were hurting and my right foot felt a little numb and I overall just wasn’t feeling it, especially since I knew the next few miles were a little boring. I stopped at a med tent for Tylenol, and received my first X on the back of my hand in almost a decade (for medics to track the number of doses I got on the course). Miles 9-11 - 10:04, 10:00, 10:28 All I kept thinking about is how I would rather be having fun with Emmy. I did some soul searching for what I was really excited about during the course. Magic Kingdom, of course, but that was already over with. I’ve already run the Boardwalk and EPCOT in other races. I realized what I really really wanted to do was run through Animal Kingdom for the first time. I stopped for a walk break and texted Jamie to alert him to my new plan and asked him to check the course map for the first med tent after DAK. He texted back immediately with a super supportive message and 14.4 - my finish line. Mile 12 - 10:48 I actually thought I walked most of this mile. I texted a couple friends to let them know my plans, and was blown away by the support I received for the decision. Miles 13 & 14 - 11:14 & 10:51 Running through Animal Kingdom was even more fun than I had imagined! The spot where we entered backstage was the same place we entered for our wedding! There was tons of crowd support and we got to see the tree of life, expedition Everest, and the kids’ section of DinoLand. It was oh so much fun, especially knowing that I was almost to the end of my race. The sun was just starting to come out, and even though it was a beautiful morning, it was warming up very quickly. The med tent in the Animal Kingdom parking lot was listed on the map at 14.4, which means I did a really terrible job of running the tangents, since I was .38 ahead. It turns out it’s really hard to quit a Disney race! The med tent told me that if I wanted to stop, I actually had to sit and wait until the sweepers come through since it wasn’t an emergency, which was still several hours away. I took a bottle of water and thanked them, and pretended I was going to continue on longer, then snuck through the Animal Kingdom parking lot to the park buses. The first one that came was to TTC, so I hopped on, then walked back to Shades of Green from there. What an adventure that turned out to be! Total 14.78 miles, 10:07 average pace
I can’t truthfully say I’m upset with the way this race turned out. I didn’t really train for it, and honestly I’ve never had a marathon go well for me yet. But I just had so much fun during the almost 15 miles I did run! Disney races are always so magical and I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of running down Main Street USA. I’m so happy I finally got to run through Animal Kingdom - that was super fun! And, most importantly, Emmy was definitely ready to go to Magic Kingdom when I got back. Her favorite things were It’s A Small World, the parade, and of course her new bubble wand. Yesterday turned out to be the best day ever!! Even though I didn’t go back to the finish line for the medal, I did technically end up with 26.2 miles on my Garmin from all the walking after the race, so I just may wear my shirt :)
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Last year when we were in the early stages of wedding planning, we gave our Disney Wedding consultant what we thought was a completely ridiculous request. After several weeks of back and forth, we were finally approved for the THIRD EVER ceremony to happen in Disney's Animal Kingdom!!! We were given very limited options for dates and times, but one in particular stuck out to me - February 26 - for two specific reasons: 1. It's my Grandpa Ed's birthday 2. Isn't that Princess Weekend?!!! If you've been reading my blog for a while, you probably aren't the least bit surprised that I planned my wedding around both a race and a Disney trip. I could probably write a whole blog post about how much fun planning a Disney wedding was, including the backstage tours, meeting with our chefs in the Epcot kitchen, cake tasting, evacuating during Hurricane Irma.... But anyways, let's skip right to one of the first events of our wedding weekend - Princess 10k! We decided to go to the expo on Thursday (mostly because we were able to get Flight of Passage fastpasses on Friday). The expo started at noon, but we got there about a half hour early and were able to get right in to pick up our packets and shirts with no wait! I was surprised that we earned a spot in A corral -- that was a first for me! As is typical for RunDisney, the race started so early in the morning. We were dressed and in line for a bus by 3:40 am. The ride from Riverside to the start area was quick and uneventful. We did a few laps around the Epcot parking lot to get a 10 minute warm up in, and that's when I realized I forgot to bring a Gu with me. I had originally planned on racing this, but decided to just have fun due to the high humidity. We got to the start area wayyyy too early and had to wait before we could even get to our corral. After what seemed like forever, we watched the fireworks go off and it was finally time to start!!! Miles 1 & 2- 8:44, 8:35 The pace felt easy despite having to spend much of the first mile weaving through other people. I had forgotten how so many walkers cheat the system to start in the first corral - easily my least favorite part about Disney races. This part of the course wasn't terribly exciting or memorable. There were a couple characters and an enormous tv that I think was playing Moana. Disney has a magical way of making those boring highway miles go by fast ;) Mile 3 - 8:43 During this mile, we were able to watch a couple other corrals start. Yay fireworks! We finally reached backstage Epcot and got to the World Showcase and IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!! This is the first race I've done that went through there and I was thrilled! It is super pretty and I don't remember ever seeing all the countries lit up like that. Truly a unique experience that made the race so worth it! Running through Italy was so exciting, seeing where our first dance was going to be and looking for spots that would be good for wedding pictures. Mile 4 - 8:54 On to the Boardwalk! Did I mention I've never run here before? There were a couple small hills that took maybe 20-30 seconds to climb. I enjoyed all the spectators that were out cheering us on! IT WAS JUST MAGICAL!! Miles 5 & 6 - 8:59, 9:16, 8:07 kick pace I've never been a front of the pack runner before, so it was really special for me to experience the World Showcase and the last little bit through Future World without much of a crowd. When we ran through the UK, Jamie and I made sure to point out where our dessert party would be later that night! We stopped in front of the ball for a picture, but got yelled at by the photographer for jumping :( As always, the on course entertainment was a blast and we quickly made our way to the finish line! 10k in 55:26, 8:55 average pace
Last Saturday, I ran Richmond Half Marathon! I had originally registered for the full but it turned out training with a baby was way too much for me, and I dropped back to the half a couple months ago. I am so glad I made that decision because I achieved some huge goals in Richmond!
Jamie and I traveled with a couple of our besties, Wes and Andy. We arrived in Richmond on Thursday and stayed at the most adorable hotel ever, Quirk Hotel. We picked it because it was only a few blocks from the start line, and it turned out to be the most perfect place.
Thursday evening we went for a shakeout run and did some carb loading at Tarrant's Cafe. On Friday, we did some touristy things and went to the expo which was small and uneventful. Later that night, we laid out our flat runners and got to bed early - Emmy went to Grammy's for the weekend so we were able to sleep all night!
We woke up bright and early on Saturday, ready to race!! All 4 of us walked to the corrals together, but the half marathon started one street over. I found my way to corral C and tried my best to keep warm until the race started - it was 24 degrees at the start! My plan for the race was to hold 9:00 pace as long as I possibly could to see if I could break two....
Miles 1 & 2 - 8:57, 8:58
Off to a great start! The first two miles flew by. I was feeling good, although a little cold. There were a few sections of road construction where I had to watch my footing so I didn't fall.
Mile 3 - 8:53
My pace doesn't reflect how I was feeling this mile. We reached an overpass that was our first hill and it took everything for me to not walk. You see, my last double digit long run was about a month and a half before the race, and I wasn't feeling terribly confident in my ability to finish.
Miles 4 & 5 - 9:00, 9:06
The course went through a cute little neighborhood with great crowd support. I kept making deals with myself. I decided to finish my first gu before I would consider a walk break; I started the gu at 4.5 and took about a mile to get it down.
Mile 6 - 9:01
Part of the course did a big loop around a park, so we got to see all the fast runners here. I saw the 1:30 and 1:35 pace groups, and kept my focus on the other runners instead of my own tired legs.
Mile 7 - 8:53
Lots of downhill on this mile!! I was trying to be cautious on the hills because I had a feeling all those downhills meant we would have to go right back up....
Miles 8 & 9 - 9:14, 9:02
UPHILL. Not feeling like running anymore. When we finished the park loop, I focused on the runners just entering the park. I knew I had finished most of the uphills and the course headed back towards the river around mile 10.
Mile 10 - 8:58
I tried my hardest to hang on to 9:00 minute pace. It felt like I was slowing a lot, and I was surprised I was still on pace when I looked at my watch. I started my last gu, which ended up taking me almost a mile and a half to finish.
Miles 11 & 12 - 9:01, 9:09
I did a lot of math the last couple miles to keep my mind busy. What would my time be if I held 9:00 to the finish? Could I break two if I manage 10:00 for the rest of the race? What mile was Jamie at?
I was expecting this part of the course to be obviously downhill, but there were still some rolling hills. Mile 13 - 8:51 and 7:04 kick
A little hill, and right turn, and I SAW THE FINISH. All downhill and I flew the last half a mile! Kick kick kick! I didn't believe my watch when I saw my time crossing that finish line.
1:58:11
I DID IT!!! I went into the race not sure if I could even run the whole thing, and I ended up PRing!! The course was a little hilly (nothing compared to Pittsburgh), but I loved it! I fought so hard for that sub two and the majority of it was mental.
I had to hike back up the hill to get back to the hotel, and took a long hot shower to thaw out after that cold race. The boys made their way back after they finished - a marathon PR for Jamie and Andy - then we went out for drinks and food. The rest of our weekend was mainly focused on food, relaxing, and Cards of Humanity. What a great weekend! :)
Last weekend, I noticed something in my Facebook feed where tagging a friend in a post would enter us both to win free entries to a 5k. I tagged Jamie, and guess what -- we were selected for the free race entries!! With it being my first week of marathon training, I didn't want to skip my long run, so I ran 12 miles Saturday and planned to do my best at the race Sunday knowing my legs would be tired and I wouldn't be able to truly race.
The course of Sweat Local Columbus 5k went through the neighborhoods of Powell, Ohio, a suburb north of Columbus. We had perfect weather, sunshine and low 60s. Jamie, Emmy, and I arrived about an hour before the race started to give ourselves time to park, get our bibs, and warm up. We found our way to the start line, and since it was a small race, I was nervous about how close I was to the front! Before I knew it, it was time to start! My plan for the race had been to take the first half of it easy, then push if I was able to. I woke up with my legs feeling verrrry hungover from yesterday's long run, and I went into the race thinking it was going to be a chip timed recovery run. Mile 1 - 8:51 I did my best to start out slow but of course was a little caught up in the excitement of the first quarter mile or so and had to remind myself that I was supposed to be taking it easy! With all the turns through the neighborhood, I could see Jamie & Emerson ahead of me for quite of bit of this mile. Just before the first mile, there was a bit of an uphill and a nice loop on a street with sprinklers :) Mile 2 - 8:34 This is where I started to realize I could push a little, and I passed a few people that were near me. I took water at the halfway point, and clung to the only other racer I saw for the next mile. The course had some rolling hills, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well I was holding on to my pace despite how tired my legs were. Mile 3 - 8:37 We ran through the most wonderful section of the neighborhood where the trees shaded most of the course! The hills flattened out and then toward the end there was a lovely little downhill! I fought hard and finally passed the guy I had been following for over a mile. I felt strong and happy this whole mile! Kick - 7:54 pace Y'all this guy with a stroller came out of nowhere and took the tangent on the last turn better than I did and I really thought he was going to finish ahead of me! I know I wasn't planning on racing, but I gave that last sprint all I had to beat him! Official time - 26:57 Eighth overall, third overall female, and first in my age group! Yay! Jamie and Emmy finished in 20:39, third overall! I won a gift card to a local running store for placing in my age group, which is perfect timing because my current pair of Hokas have almost 500 miles on them. The second trimester has been fairly uneventful as far as pregnancies go. I've been blessed with an easy pregnancy and I had never expected to feel so normal! I've continued running four days a week throughout the second trimester, but have cut my mileage to about 15-20 miles a week. I've also slowed my pace a lot. Since the weather has been cooler, I haven't needed to do run/walk, but instead have been listening to my body and taking a break after every mile or so. Some runs are easier than others, but I am overall feeling pretty good. There were about three weeks where running was such a struggle, and I ended up taking an entire six days off, but my body truly needed the rest. An easy beach run while in Myrtle Beach with my sisters quickly reminded me why I love running so much. I've been back at it ever since, even though that sometimes means sneaking in a little 2-3 mile run! My long runs have been pretty limited since Seawheeze Half. I've done 8 miles a couple times, and ran a 9 mile race around week 25. The race was hot and hilly, so I had to walk a lot, but I'm doing my best to keep the distance up! I figure that will make coming back to running easier after Emmy is born! A couple weeks ago, my running friends wanted to run the last ten miles of the Columbus Marathon course, so I tagged a long for a few miles and was surprised by how great of a run I had! The weather was absolutely perfect, I barely needed to walk, and I loved getting to run somewhere different from the usual! One of the goals I had set when we found out we're expecting was to run a half marathon in every trimester. I kept hearing different things about the official start of each trimester, so I decided to count mine based on the most logical way: math. 40 weeks / 3 = 13 weeks, 2.33 days per trimesterThis means the third trimester started on 26 weeks, 5 days, which coincidentally was the same exact day as Columbus Half Marathon! On race morning, I was unsure of how to pace myself so I decided to start easy and take plenty of walk breaks so I could finish strong. It's a little frustrating not being able to actually race, but Columbus is one of my favorite races and I enjoyed every minute of it. The crowd support is unlike any other race I've experienced, I love the course, and reading the stories of the Children Champions reminded me of how grateful I am to be carrying a healthy little baby. Emerson was moving around quite a bit during the race, which is a strange feeling that I'm still not used to! I love how miles 2-3 on Broad Street I got to watch the speedy runners coming back (mile 6.5-7.5 for them). I saw Jamie here and cheered on a lot of our friends too! Since it was an unusually hot day, I made sure to drink lots of water and go extra slow. Once we made the last turn on High Street around mile 11, I knew I had a lot left in me and had probably been a little too cautious in the beginning. I ran the last mile and a half pretty close to my normal half marathon pace, and it felt so good to move like that even though it was only for a short distance! Once I crossed the finish line and found Jamie, we watched a few of our friends that were running the full, then headed to CRC's after party. I'm so excited that I was able to run a half in every trimester! The first two were before we even found out I was pregnant, and the other two were significantly slower due to lots of walk breaks. However, they were all faster than my first half marathon - Princess almost 3 years ago. I will definitely continue running as long as I can, but for now I'm taking things one day at at time and don't have any more big races planned before Emmy is here.
Last weekend I ran Capital City Half Marathon here in Columbus! I was super anxious the few days before the race and so ready to PR that I didn't end up tapering really at all. I'm honestly the worst at tapering! I was hoping to break two hours at this race, but I don't think my long runs have been long enough, and I haven't been doing a whole lot of speed work either, so I knew going into the race that a sub 2:00 was a long shot.
On race morning, J and I left super early and got a parking spot near the corrals. We met up with a friend, then started our warm up. I did just over a mile at a 10:23 pace which I took as a good sign because my birthday is 10/23 (I'm such a numbers person!). J walked me to corral E, then his crazy fast self went to corral A. I don't remember much of the start other than the CBJ cannon going off because I was just SO ANXIOUS and ready to start!
Mile 1 - 8:55
Oops, too fast. I planned on running the first few miles around a 9:15-9:30 pace and see how I felt then try to push myself at the end. I was surprised by how many people were out cheering us on! The weather wasn't great, but everyone just seemed so happy to be there. This mile went by so fast! Miles 2 & 3 - 9:10, 9:19 I started settling into my pace a little bit better here, mainly because this was a long, slow uphill. My legs felt tired and I was already wondering if I was going to PR. I was freezing cold in my Raw Threads tank and Sparkle skirt. Miles 4 - 6 - 9:06, 9:22, 9:30 This part of the course went around campus and then started heading back toward downtown. I took my first gu at 4.5 then finally tossed the water bottle that I started the race with. I saw my friends Chris and Amanda who were out cheering on runners before running Flying Pig the next day. I was so happy to see them! Miles 7 & 8 - 9:02, 8:54 Struggle. Bus. I was running back down High St at this point and was seriously ready to give up on my PR. There were lots of spectators, but I was extremely annoyed by a large group of them standing in the middle of the course handing out green bracelets - I didn't take one and don't know what they were for, but I definitely didn't enjoy having to use extra energy to go around them. I was not feeling great here, then I passed Eric toward the end of mile 7 and told him I was struggling. He ran with me for a bit and gave me the best pep talk ever and also let me know that J was "hauling ass" (direct quote because obviously those words would never come out of my mouth haha!). Mile 9 - 9:23 Now that my mental game was back where it need to be, I took my final gu (only used two total!). I was tired, but enjoying the race. We caught up to the quarter marathon and 5k, and I actually passed the balloon ladies for the 5k before we split off again! Miles 10 & 11 - 9:38, 10:05 I love running around German Village and Schiller Park! There were so many people out cheering us on!! I kept focusing on putting one foot in front of the other and knew that I wasn't going to break two hours, but I was still going to have a decent PR. I remember thinking how slow mile 11 was, then I realized only a few months ago I thought a ten minute pace was super fast! Thinking about how much progress I've made helped me to keep going! Mile 12 - 10:05 This mile sucked. There were some little hills and I was so ready to be done. One foot in front of the other.... Mile 13 and the final .1 - 9:44, 9:48 The last mile went out over a bridge (hill) turned around and came back over a different bridge (HILL), then we went straight uphill for a half a mile before turning left and finishing. I didn't kick. I was completely out of energy and it took everything I had left to not walk to the finish like it seemed everyone else was doing. FINISH! - 2:03:54, a 9:27 pace Gosh I was so happy to see that finish line!! I had a PR by a little over eight minutes! After getting my medal, I made my way through Columbus Commons to find Jamie, who also PR'd (1:27:53!!). Apparently I was all blue/purple after I finished because I was so cold, so we said hi to a couple friends then went home to warm up! Overall, I think I had a great race! I wish we had nicer weather, but I'm proud of my new PR and love how much my hard work is finally paying off!!
Last weekend, I ran Choo Choo Nine Miler in Westerville, Ohio! When I registered back in January, I was expecting decent weather but Ohio apparently had other plans. I ended up going to buy a new outfit the afternoon before the race because I wasn't prepared to race in 19 degrees and snow. I was planning on running this nine mile race at half marathon pace (9:07) just to see if I have a good shot at breaking two hours at Cap City in a few weeks.
The morning of the race, J and I met up with a few of his speedy friends and I started my one mile warm up. I went to turn around at the halfway point and wiped out on an icy bridge (common theme on this blog: Alyssa falling down while running), so I was not expecting this race to go very well!
The first mile and a half of the race was on the road, then the rest of it was on a paved trail. I ran on these trails countless times when I lived in Westerville, so I knew the course pretty well. I started out very strong, running my first mile in 8:43! There were a couple bridges that were a bit icy, so I took those slow but pushed myself on the rest. I ran the entire race with music, and I took two Gus (one at each 5k split) - this was definitely more than I needed but it turned out just fine. We turned back toward the finish line just past 4.5, and I was still feeling so fast at this point. I started struggling around mile 7, slowing down the next two miles to 9:04 and 9:19 respectively. Luckily, Jamie started his cool down backwards along the course after his impressive 59:55 finish and then ran my last two-thirds of a mile with me. I was exhausted at this point and was so happy to have him there for that last part of the race! My official finish time was 1:19:41, a 8:51 pace! I ended up going even faster than I meant to, and I feel pretty confident about being about to break two hours at Cap City Half.
Training is going even better than I ever expected! This week, I finished my entire track workout for the first time (it was only my fourth week!). We ran 5x600s with 300 rests, and I was able to keep up with my friend Amanda for the whole workout. My weekly miles still aren't terribly consistent - I'll run low 30s one week then low 20s the next then be back up in the high 20s for a couple weeks. I'm still working on consistency, but I am making so much progress and I've seen huge improvements in my pace :D I'm averaging around 9:45 now! I'm also so proud of how much I stuck with running while I was moving - finally starting to get settled in now though!
Yesterday, I went a little bit outside of my comfort zone and met up with the Living Fit Columbus running group. I'm so glad I made it out to one of their runs - everyone was so sweet and encouraging! I truly love an empowering group of ladies!
That is just about all going on right now! I have one more long run tomorrow before I start tapering. I want to run sub 2:00 at Cap City then have fun the following weekend in Indy. :)
So far 2016 has been a year of new beginnings, and I am so thankful for having many new opportunities and friends who support me 100%. Without turning this into a typical Sappy Alyssa blog post... some really spectacular things are happening in my life right now. And not even just in running! I have something HUGE happening next Tuesday that I'd rather wait until it's official to post about but I literally cannot contain my excitement!!! :D I've been running much more consistently since a close friend became my running coach back in November (and eventually started dating said coach-friend, but that's a story for another day). Once I started increasing my miles, I also increased my pace a little without much effort. I'm slowly adding a tiny bit of speed work and I have some seriously ambitious goals for my upcoming races!
I honestly think that I used to be too scared to push myself too much - as soon as I'd get uncomfortable, I'd back off. But things have changed so much now that I'm realizing that nothing bad is going to happen... and instead, good things are happening. I love my little legs :)
I had the best time ever in Disney World! I think runDisney races are my favorite :) Ashley, Amanda, and I arrived on Wednesday and went straight to the expo, then spent the rest of the evening wandering around Disney Springs. Thursday, we went to Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom! We did LOTS that day, including Kilimanjaro Safaris, Expedition Everest, Dinosaur, Pirates of the Caribbean, It's a Small World, Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger, and saw the fireworks! We were lucky enough to get brunch reservations at Chef Mickey's on Friday and filled our little tummies with Mickey waffles. After that, we did a little resort hopping then to bed early since we had an early wakeup for the race! Getting up at 2:30 am to run a half marathon is never easy but Donald, Woody, and Buzz were so excited and ready to have fun! I had a little tiny cold while I was in Disney so combined with a few early mornings and 96(!!!!!)% humidity, I had decided ahead of time to take this one easy and just enjoy myself. I swear this race went by so fast! It didn't seem like we were in the corrals long before our fireworks went off and it was time to start. The first 3 or 4 miles were fairly uneventful, up until we got to the Magic Kingdom parking entrance. There were so many people out cheering us on for the next few miles. I got all emotional running up Main Street, USA (typical Alyssa!). Running through Magic Kingdom was the best - I loved all of the positive energy!! Before I knew it, I was back on the highway and headed to the finish line! The sun didn't come up until maybe around mile 8, but it was so humid and foggy that I couldn't see very far the entire race. I was so ready to kick butt on those couple on ramps toward the end - I ran Princess half two years ago so I knew what was coming. All of the characters and entertainment along the course, as well as the other runners and everyone out cheering us on, made me so happy that it didn't even feel like I was running. I was just taking it all in and quickly made my way to Epcot for the last mile! I had one more tiny sad moment in here when I realized Peggy Sue wasn't there, but I was all smiles at the finish line! I even took my first ever both feet off the ground running picture! I was seriously excited when I saw that and finally feel like a "real" runner. I finished in 2:17:14 - my second fastest half marathon ever!! I was eighteen minutes faster than last time I ran this course two years ago. After the race, we all showered and headed to Epcot to celebrate! It was such a fun day and I was exhausted at the end of it! We spent our last day at Disney Springs before coming back to cold, snowy Ohio. I had such a fun trip and race! I haven't been running very much since Disney because a.) it's cold and b.) my knee has been bothering me a little, so I'm trying to let that heal before I start training for my next half. The day I got back, I chopped my hair to a super cute lob and it is SO much easier and quicker. Still haven't figured out exactly what to do with it while I'm running... but I'm sure I'll find something that works soon.
I've gone back and forth over whether or not I should even post anything about last weekend's marathon. As much as I try to stay positive, I'd also like to keep it as real as possible. The last few weeks have been full of ups and downs, and the days leading up to the marathon were very, very difficult for personal reasons. I knew going into the race that I wasn't going to be able to pull off what I trained so hard for. I at least get points for looking super cute, right?
The race itself was everything I had hoped for. The course was beautiful (and flat!), the entertainment along the course kept me going, and every single spectator made me smile. The weather was perfect for running a marathon; it was a little chilly in the morning and I probably didn't need a long sleeved shirt but it worked out just fine. I ran the first 10 or so miles with my friend Chris, who did a great job of keeping me motivated that far! Through the angel mile and up past the Nationwide buildings into the Short North, I was actually feeling pretty good physically - that's where I ran my fastest splits. I saw lots and lots of friends out running and cheering me on. I didn't walk until past mile 19, and ended up walking the majority of miles 23 & 24 - compared to first walking at mile 12 of my first marathon and walking most of miles 18-26. I managed a 25 minute PR and broke five hours for the first time!
I just didn't feel right. I was so emotionally drained and I never got a runner's high during this race. I'm so proud of myself for even showing up to the start line, but part of me is so disappointed for not accomplishing what I trained so hard for.
For now, I'm focusing on putting one foot in front of the other, and not letting myself look back. On to better things.
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Hello, my name is Alyssa!I'm a momma to Emerson Lilly and two fur babies, a distance runner, and just a girl full of sparkle and quirks. I love traveling to races and exploring new places to run! I started this blog in 2014 as more of a journal to keep track of training for my first marathon, and I've continued to post about training, races, and other things happening in my life. Also, I'd like to be your best friend. :) Categories
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