Half Marathon Happiness

13 POINT FEAKIN 1 MILES BABY!!!

I did it...Here's the details...

The day before the race was pretty much a normal day in our life...except thanks to my Hubby I got to drink coffee out of my badass Wonder Woman cup!

 I got my pre race adjustment........................................ I think this is his "thank God all the training and running are FINIAL Y over face....At least that's what he thinks.

He really is a huge part of why my body has felt so good this entire time.  Thanks hubby...and Max for the photo bomb.

We got to Chicago around 10:30 Friday night and I went right to bed.  Suprisingly I wasn't nervous. I just wanted to get to sleep so I could wake up and go...However my mind had a different idea.  I had the craziest, most realistic dream.  I kept hearing my alarm go off but didn't get up.  I ended up getting to the race 15 minutes late and they said I could still start but I only had 2 hours 45 minutes to finish which was REALLY close to the amount of time I thought it would take me...Then I would wake up and tell myself I was crazy and go to sleep.  So I did and I would have the same feakin dream over again...All.Night.Long.

When my alarm went off at 6:00 I was so so so so so thankful that this day was finially here! To me it was so much more than just a race.  I really didn't care about my finishing time as long as I finished within the 3 hour time limit.  I had sacrificed so much to be able to do this.  I followed Hal Higdon's Novice 1 training program.  Which was completely manageable and a GREAT program for me.  But it meant a lot of time away from my kids.  I missed trips to the park, lazy mornings watching shows, night time walks to the Dairy Queen, and so much more.  I would take the Max Man on my shorter runs but anything over 5 miles I couldn't so that meant my hubby had to step up to the plate and wrangle all of our crazies.  Not an easy task for a Dad...especially when the baby and him aren't quite on the same page yet.  But he did it...for me...because he knew that training for this meant so much to me.  It was making me a better mom and a better wife.  And only once in the 6 months I trained did he complain about me being gone.  (Please read complain as was a complete ass bag.) But I really owe him a HUGE thank you because without him I wouldn't have been able to do this.  But on the flip side without him I may not have had 3 kids in 3 1/2 years so I wouldn't NEED to do this.................................................................................... I kid.  Love you hubby.

And in true supportive hubby fashion he was up at the crack of dawn with me to go wait at the start line :)

Laced up my shoes...adorned with some maroon and gold...GO DUTCH! The biggest thing I try to instill in my volleyball team is...If you think you can't...you won't. So I wore these ribbons to remind myself of that.

Took some awesome pictures with that skinny hooker that I've been chasing for the last 6 months....Turned on my wicked awesome music...waited for the gun...and all of a sudden...we were off...

And then the tears started...Why...because I've worked my ass off to FINIALY be in this moment.  To be running 13 point freakin 1 miles. To be in the best shape of my life.  I was more mentally and physically prepared for this race than I was for any of my children coming earth side.  (I don't recommend not being ready for childbirth....fyi.) 

SO for the first mile I cried because of that.  But then....all along the first few miles of the route there were lots of people holding signs supporting their loved ones.  The ones that got me were the kids...signs held by sweet little boys that said "Run Mommy Run! We are so proud of you!" and then one that made me full out ugly cry was a picture of Iron Man on half and the other side said, "my mommy taught him his tricks." Lost it. Completely lost it.  But in the midst of my ugly crying I was maintain an 11 minute mile...Good...no...WAY THE EFF TO FAST!! But I couldn't figure out how to slow down.  My goal was to run negative splits which means you start slow and get faster.  So in theory my first mile should have been my slowest of the day. HA. 

At mile 5...when I FINALLY STOPPED CRYING.  I was still running between an 11 and 11:30 minute mile.  NO GOOD.  But I really couldn't figure out how to slow down.  And I felt good.  So I kept going. Not to long later I slowed down at a water station and was passed by the 11:30 pacers.  These are people that you have to stay with if you want to finish in a certian amount of time.  So if I would have stayed with them I would have been on pace to finish at 2 hours 30 minutes.  I decided to keep going at their pace because it was doable and I was almost half way.

This was exactly half way.  Who snaps a picture half way through  a half marathon...This girl.  I was half way to my goal...I was half way through and I felt amazing.  I was singing.  Keeping up with the 11:30 pacers. Doing great. And then as I neared mile 8...I felt my muscles start to get tired.  This was my first sign of fatigue the entire run so I wasn't to worried about it. Then the 11:30 pacers passed me. I just kept going...But at mile 9 my body had officially said F-U SARAH!! My Map My Run coach told me that my last mile was 12:54..HA! So much for those negative splits!! My body figured out how to slow down all on it's own and from that point forward I paid for how fast I started.  But I just kept reminding myself that I was here to finish. Not to race.  So I just.Kept.Going.

The view through mile 9...not to bad.  My goal for this race was to run the entire thing.  Which I'm happy to say I did but I must be honest...I would have walked if my body would have let me.  Between miles 10 and 11 I tried to walk and I couldn't walk in a straight line.  My muscles had been contracted to run for the past 2 hours...It truly was easier to keep running. So I did...but slowly! When I passed the mile 12 marker I thought ...Holy freakin shit I'm almost there. ONE MORE MILE!!! Little did I know that would be the LONGEST MILE OF MY LIFE!! I finally saw my hubby and it took every ounce of will power I had not to beg him to drag me to the finish line.  

This is half way though mile 12 when I saw Dana.  I was tired.  My body hated me. My mind was DONE-ZO. But I was almost there. I started to see the cute little kids with signs for their mommys.  There were these super cute little boys giving high fives to anyone that wanted one when the ran by. I knew I was getting close.  A seasoned marathoner I know gave me some good advice before my race and one of her tips was to take my ear buds out the last half mile and just soak it all in...So I did...and it was awesome. And then I could see it...the finish line...I was almost there. As I got closer I ran faster...with every ounce of energy I had left in my body.  There was no more pain...Just sheer adrenaline.  The only thing better than seeing the words FINISH getting closer was hearing my sister who I didn't think was going to make it yelling GO SAS YOU'RE ALMOST THERE!! I started crying almost instantly and a few steps later I crossed the finish line at 2 hours 41 minutes and full out ugly cried.  13.1 miles.  6 months of training.  Countless sacrifices. So much love and support from my friends and family so I could do this for myself.  I did it. I freakin did it. From 204 pounds to 1/2 marathon runner in 6 months.  

Here's a sneak peak of the ugly cry...don't worry the professional photographers they have at the finish line captured the real thing...

Best surprise EVER! Notice the fence is fully supporting my body. 

She came all that was just to stretch my legs for me. 

Afterwards there was a party...music...champaign...beefy guys to take pictures with...I was having NONE of it. I could hardly walk and was D.O.N.E DONE. My hubby snapped a couple quick pictures before I plopped into the front seat of a cab (NOT A SAFE PLACE FOR SOMEONE WITH CONTROL ISSUES) and headed back to our hotel.

After I run I get the chills.  Even if it's just 3 miles.  So this is me as soon as we got back to the hotel...entire running outfit still on including my shoes.  

My hubby convinced me to go to the hot tub...Good choice. It felt amazing.  But about 20 minutes later I got light headed and went back to our room and that's when I made the best decision of my life.

I ordered grilled cheese, buttered noodles, butternut squash soup, orange juice, and fresh fruit. Pure Heaven. The best $40 I've EVER spent. Dana went back to the hot tub and I ate my absolutely amazing meal and relaxed for awhile. However...our beloved Cubbies were playing that afternoon and I knew I would have to hobble my way to the shower in the near future to try and look presentable for the game.  Note: I DO NOT reccommend doing ANYTHING post half marathon but we LOVE our Cubs and we have never watched a game at Wrigley together before...We couldn't pass it up.

This is how you dry your hair after running 13.1 miles.

GO CUBS GO!! To make this day more perfect...The Cubs came back in the 8th inning!! And everyone knows a Cubbies win means you sing GO CUBS GO at the top of your lungs!!! It was amazing. But after that. I was spent.  We had a quiet dinner and I was in bed by 9:30. 

Me...Getting my first full night of sleep in 8 months. It.was.splended. 

The next day I woke up and all my joint pain I had experienced the day before was gone and we were up and rolling by 8 a.m. We walked around and touristed it up for awhile and then headed back to the Mich and our babes.  

So what did I learn:

1. When seasoned marathon runner tell you to NOT START TO FAST that means anything before mile 8 SHOULD NOT BE FAST!!

2. Cross training is just as if not more important than running while you're training.  WHEN I do it again (which I will in June of 2014 Dexter Ann Arbor WOOP WOOOP!) I will do A LOT more work to strengthen my muscles.  My lungs could have gone on forever.  My muscles gave up at mile 11. I

3. DO NOT plan to woop it up in Chicago that night.  No pants, ice packs, and TLC were a much better choice. 

Where do I go from here?

I will continue with my running because I really do enjoy it. But I will run shorter distances. 3-4 miles 3 days a week and one 4-5 miler on the weekends. Each month I will do either a 5k or 10k.  5k's will be for speed and 10k's will be for endurance.  I'm considering joining a fitness center to work more on my strength. I do have some weight loss goals to meet but what I've found it instead of focusing on my weight I focus on my fitness and the weight loss just goes with it. I NEED to get more in tuned with my eating.  But training for a half marathon makes you HANGRY (that's angry and hungry). So next week I will post and update on my weight and measurements so I have a realistic look at how far I've come and set a goal for where I want to be.  But again...it's really not about the number on the scale. It's about that feeling.  The feeling of being a complete BADASS...and let me tell you I feel like one. 

Left: First vacation post Baby #2 (April 2012) Right: First vacation post Baby #3 (September 2013)

Left: First 5K after having Tyler (June 2013) Right: First Half Marathon EVER (September 2013)

Just.Keep.Going.