My first half marathon!

I am in the white baseball cap.

I did it! Yesterday, I ran the Cap City Half Marathon!! I did 13.1 miles in 2 hours 44 minutes at a pace of 12:32/mile. My bib was 5626.

I am amazed that my body was able to run that type of distance, especially with asthma. I have asthma due to allergies, and I also have exercise-induced asthma, so this really was a milestone in my life. At 40, I was able to run, and not just run, but run over 13 miles.

My training started back in January with the folks at Frontrunner. We met up Sunday mornings for three months to do our long runs together. I don't know what I'd have done without that group. There is noway I would have run passed 7 by myself. Plus, all my friends and family were so supportive. It was a great experience.

Race day I thought I was going to be more nervous than I was. I guess since I had done a few other races I wasn't as nervous, but I was scared. The longest distance I ran at the time was 12 and that was really tough for me. Race day I asked my friend Bridgette to meet up at 10 and run me in. I seriously don't know how I would have gotten through the last 3 miles without her. She was telling me stories about crazy ladies and their kids and kept me positive about finishing.

I can't believe the race is over. Seriously, after all that training and time, it is hard to be up on a Sunday and not be running with the group. If there is another one in my future I am doing these things:

1. Keeping up with running long runs of 5 - 7 miles before training starts.
2. Eating properly and drinking more water daily.
3. Strength training and cross training - I would have run a better race if I had done these consistently and more often.
4. Hopefully not get sick. I had a nasty lung infection for over a month in March/April. I think that really slowed me down - not only physically, but mentally. I was tired and sick and not in a good state of mind. Runners have bad days, yes, but more than a few days makes it hard to remain positive. I almost was going to back out at one point, but after training for so long that was not a realistic option.