An Epic Day: NYC Half Marathon

2) Overcome my fear of running a race alone. Unbeknownst to many, I have a fear of running races longer than 5k alone. I have always felt like i’d get tired and give in to my aching muscles. I felt like i’d become that girl who started walking or never crossed the finish line. I think it is partially due to the natural intimidation one fears when participating in races with a large group like the NYRR. There are both elite and novice runners who participate in the races but many times seeing the striders in their jerseys and the elite runners prepping gives me chills. Chills of excitement and chills of intimidation which force me to question why i’m at the same event. I think this is also due to the fact that I ran the first ELEVEN races (2 5K, 2 5 milers, 1 8K, 1 10K, and five half marathons) with someone for the entire race. I started running 4.5 years ago so I could join my best friends in their annual Macon Labor Day Road Race tradition. After graduating college running was one of the things that kept my best friend Amy and I connected during our first few years with P&G as we would train for races virtually together and then travel to Charlotte or Philadelphia to run the actual race together. Before we were each married and living with our significant others we would spend hours talking each week about our training plan, schedule, and dream of the next race. Therefore, it wasn’t until this year that I had to worry about running alone. I was able to manage the shorter NYRR events as they were only 4 mile races and even those i’d often find a running partner in a blogger friend like Dori or Melissa. I started getting anxious about the NYC Half Marathon last week when Dori told me that she intended to run this race on her own since it was her first half marathon and she needed to do it for herself. I understood this rational but immediately went into panic mode. What if I got tired? Who would push me through the hills? Who would be my pacer? At the end of the day, Bo helped me realize that like Dori, I needed to do this for myself and I needed to prove, once and for all, that I would be my own motivation. Sunday morning, as my corral started moving towards the starting line, I took one deep breath in as I took in the scenery. These were my people. In this moment, I was just as much of a runner as the next person. I had woken up at 5:30am, prepped the night before, eaten my pre-race ritual breakfast of peanut butter and banana on toast, and pinned on my bib just like the runner next to me and the elite runners towards the front. In that moment I found an inner peace that helped me focus on my race, my time, my pace, and my breath instead of everyone else’s. Maybe this is why I didn’t see the multiple people who saw me during the race as they waved from the crowds. I was focused and determined.

3) Overcome my fear of hills. I grew up in the very flat town of Savannah, Georgia. Our town is so flat that they have to bring in dirt to raise the lots so that the homes are above the flood plain for insurance reasons. When I moved to New York City and ran in Central Park for the first time my legs thought they’d just entered the Rocky Mountains or the seventh circle of hell. I had never experienced hills nor knew how to handle them. Over the last year i’ve merely pushed through them, cussed them, or walked them during the numerous NYRR events. But, this year, in preparation for the half marathon, I read about hills on Runners World and talked to more experienced runners.  I knew that these could be my advantage if I approached them correctly. On Saturday I checked my form (shoulders down, neck and back straight, arms lower, body leaned ever so slightly forward) before entering each hill and pushed backwards on my iPod so each hill started a new song. This helped me power through the hill, focus on the music, and overcome even my steepest conquest at the northernmost part of Central Park. I was able to power through hills similar to the ones below without walking, crying, or aggravation. In fact, I dominated the hills so much that I set a PR for my 5K time (28:30) which could explain why the last 3 miles of this race were so hard for me. I was EXHAUSTED. 

4) Run the best half marathon I’ve run in 2.5 years! While my NYC Half Marathon time may not seem amazing to most people (2:20:24) this was my best time in 2.5 years and included THREE porta potty stops which were very inconvenient. These three stops accounted for 6:22 on my time which means that without them my time would have been a 2:14 which would have been a PR. I can’t sit here and say “shoulda, coulda, woulda” but I can say that I purchased Immodium AD to keep in my race box next to the pins, Glide, and hair bands. I refuse to let silly porta potty stops get in my way next time. But, outside of these, my race was fabulous. I PR’d my 5k portion, found my pace again after my too fast start, set into a steady stride for the middle 8.5 miles, and didn’t find exhaustion or pain until the last two miles. But, the entire time I was smiling, enjoying the sites, relishing in the fact that i’m living in NYC and have the opportunity to experience events like this, and jammed to my music. I can’t wait for the official race pictures as i’m sure there will be some hand waving, head jamming, and maybe even some hip dancing as I ran through the park and Times Square. I’m already looking forward to next year and a PR! Thank you everyone for your warm wishes, support, and motivation! It was great to train and motivate each other as we trained together and congratulations to the other ladies who ran on Sunday:Katie, Melissa Z, Dori, Leslie, and Megan who also ran the race yesterday I’ll need more of the same as I begin training for the 2010 New York City Marathon!