Sunday, May 1, 2016, I ran 13.1 miles in 2 and a half hours!

I have never been much of a runner. I ran cross country in high school but I wasn’t any good. As a matter of fact, I was the worst on the team. I absolutely hated running. Last year I cheered on a handful of people at the Lincoln Marathon. As I was watching all of the runners go by I couldn’t help but feel a little jealous. All I could think was, ‘Wow, I could totally do this! There are people cheering you on every inch of this course, how cool.’ My envy inspired me. So, this year I decided to cross running a half marathon off my bucket list.

Training

I started training back in January. Unfortunately, the weather in Nebraska is about as unpredictable as it gets. One day there’s a few feet of snow on the ground and the next it’s 60 degrees outside. This made training difficult. I started on the treadmill and could never get past three miles… Treadmills are my worst enemy. Then, once it got nicer out I started running outside. In Nebraska, spring time means a lot of rain and uncontrollable winds, which was another challenge in itself.

I was planning on training up to 10 miles because what’s another three after that, right?! Well that wasn’t the case. I made it to eight miles in my training until I hurt myself. I injured my hip on April 3rd and stopped running completely until the morning of the race. I did other things in preparation for the race, I just wasn’t going to risk anymore injuries. Needless to say, I was nervous for how this race was going to go.

The Race: May 1, 7:00 a.m.

It was rainy and roughly 38 degrees at the beginning of the race. I was cold, wet and anxious. Once I crossed the starting line I felt a huge sense of relief. Wow. I’m actually doing this! I felt on top of the world for the first four miles. Around the fifth mile I felt my body tense up and really start to hurt. I was freezing, I couldn’t feel my hands, my entire body felt like it was breaking and it took all I had not to quit. I felt like I was The Little Engine That Could, “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…” I repeated that over and over again. Obviously, all of the fans cheering the runners on was extremely motivational; if it wasn’t for all of the people on the sidelines I never would have finished this race. The last mile was truly the hardest mile for me. I was literally in tears. I have never done something so hard in my life. Once I turned the corner on Stadium Drive I had reached the final stretch of the course. Just a little bit longer! I can do it! The next thing I knew I was entering  Memorial Stadium and finally crossed the finish line.

Post Race

My body has never been so sore in my entire life. Every inch of my body hurt. On the other hand, finishing 13.1 miles without walking was a huge accomplishment for me. I honestly felt like I had done the impossible. The feeling I had when I crossed the finish line was priceless. Knowing that I was able to push myself and fight to the finish made the pain worth it.

My Favorite Course Signs

• Don’t pants your poop.
• You’re running better than the government
• Motivational Sign
• Tap here for power
• You run marathons, I watch them on Netflix. You win.

#BonItOut – The Bon