5 Things I Learned During My 1st 1/2 Marathon

Happy Medal Monday!!! I finished up the Run Denver Series today with a virtual 1/2 marathon!! The roads down to the race were really bad & weather was 1 degree!!!! It was too much to get down there with the blizzard, but I had to complete my first half marathon! I had been training since Thanksgiving for it! So onto the treadmill I went!


I was doubting myself before I even started. I'm always in my head when I run, there is a tiny little part that still says....I don't want to run! LOL Then I couldn’t get my ankle brace right so I just stopped and took it off. THEN I had to stop to bathroom...TMI AND THEN I got a side cramp! That little bit of brain...really stuck it to me in those beginning miles.

I went slow through the cramp and little by little upped my water intake. At mile 6, I didn’t think I was going to make it (thank you brain doubt!). But I remembered all of your positive words throughout this process and they pushed me through! Going into mile 9, I felt very strong. I knew at that point I’d hit under 2:30 (my goal) so I pushed a bit harder. The last mile I pushed my hardest and I was a success! I’m happy I pushed through & cannot wait for the next!! 

Here are a few things I learned through the 1/2 marathon process:

1. Be careful what you eat prior to a long run. I did the normal, carb dinner and that went right through me. Next time, I have to check out Run To The Finish's blog post about pre-race fuel. It looked great!

2. Test your equipment. I tried my ankle brace the week before and it went well. Come race day, I just couldn't get it right. I should have worked with it more before the week of the race!

3. Disregard that negativity in your head! It's hard, and just like pushing through a long distance, I have to push through bad thoughts! I'm pretty good at it, but some days it just gets to me! We are only human!

4. Hydrate! I thought I was hydrating enough but nope! There is another thing I need to practice on my long runs before my next half!

5. Just Do IT! I'm so glad I didn't let the weather get in my way. I knew I wasn't prepared to run my 1/2 half marathon in 1 degree weather, so I chose the treadmill instead. I'm glad I put my safety and comfort first and was able to complete the 1/2 marathon even if it wasn't what I was planning on. Sometimes you have to just roll with it! That was probably my hardest lesson of all!

Thank you everyone for all of your support through my running journey! I've really enjoyed sharing it with you. From my first run, to now it has been an amazing journey to see what I can do when I really put my mind to something! Here's to the next mile and beyond!