138,336...1,943,040

My official time was 5:12:57. 

Showing off my first marathon medal. 

I put one foot in front of the other 138,336 times on Sunday. I can't help but be a little emotional about it.

• I don't know what made me sign up in December for this race. But I did it. 
• I don't know what kept me from making excuses every time I didn't want to run. But I ran.
• I don't know how many days I wished I would have never signed up for it because I didn't know if I could do it. But I did it.
• I don't know how many times people said I can't believe you're doing this. You don't have to. But I did it. 
• I don't know what caused me to get sick multiple times during training. But I pushed through.
• I don't know how many times I saw people pass me and think why even try. But I put one foot in front of the other. 

There are hundreds of reasons I could think of why I didn't want to do it, but I can also think of a hundred reasons why I wanted to do it.

• I want to do something hard. 
• I want to do something others can only dream of doing. 
• I want to feel alive. 
• I want to feel like an athlete for one of the only times in my life. 
• I want to prove to others you can do anything you set your mind to. 
• I want to be proud of walking in my first 5K two years ago to running a full marathon.  
• I want to prove to myself that I can do anything. 
• I want to put all my trust in Him because there were times I wasn't sure how I'd do it. 
• I want to beat my genetics. 
• I want to be my best self ever to have a baby. 
• I want to love doing something for life. 

And a hundred other reasons why I did it. I finished. I ran my own race.

I wasn't fast. I was disappointed in my time. Hundreds of people were ahead of me. But I have to remember I put one in front of the other, not just 138,336 times but 1,943,040 times throughout the training of 20 weeks to get to hold up that finisher's medal with pride.

I teared up running into Memorial Stadium. I just couldn't believe I was done. Done with the race I never thought would actually happen.

As far as the actual marathon, I'll get into that in another post this week, but I wanted to capture my thoughts just a few days after the race so I can look back on how I felt.

The not-so-glamorous side of running...

I got a little inspiration from another runner/blogger today as I read Shut Up and Run's 10 things that are not so fun about running. Check it out here. Pretty funny, yet true, stuff!

From my own personal experiences I would agree with most of them, including:

1. The not cheap part. I totally agree with this! When you figure even running a 5K is about $25-40 a crack, that can add up quickly. What I've learned as I've up'ed my mileage is to not waste money on smaller races. That is not to discredit smaller races by any means. I ran 11 of them in 2011 to keep me going. But I've learned I have to run at least 3 miles most days so paying for a 5K is kind of silly for me now. I also don't look to do any big, commercial races anytime soon like the Rock 'N' Roll series or Disney that are $100+ for a half or full marathon. That's a lot of bank for a race!

Not to mention the extras you need to buy like moisture-wicking clothes (not cheap!), good shoes (not cheap!), and all other things you think you need like compression socks, chews, gels, a hat, sunglasses, compression shorts, winter clothes, summer clothes, and it could go on!

But I still keep truckin' along and have learned to run with a few basic things and try to go without others.

2. There's always another goal. I felt like once I did a 5K, I'd be legit. Well that just fueled my fire to do more races. Then I jumped into the half-crazy group of doing half marathons. Now I'm doing the fully-crazy marathon training. There's always a better time you can go for, more distance, more hills, etc. so it's always challenging. Yet, that's the fun part right?

3. Dogs. Ugh, can I just say I HATE dogs that chase me. Really, I just wouldn't mind taking a gun and shooting them. Wrong of me yes, but when they come across the road just to try to bite me, I think that is absurd on the owner's part. I've gotten pepper spray, tried to be nice, all that stuff, but I still avoid a part of our road two houses down just because of a stupid, vicious dog.

4. Friends who think you've gone crazy. Yes, most of my friends think I am obsessed with running, and don't really get it. I am also by no means a great runner so it's not like I am going for a Boston qualifying time either. I just do what I can to stay healthy, and I like to run. I do avoid a lot of foods, don't drink alcohol other than once or twice a year, and sometimes forgo activities just to fit in a run. Running, however, has helped me feel better about myself, gain confidence that I can push my body to do something BIG, and create a healthy lifestyle for the long-term.

Those Bucket List Items...

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I don't really have an actual, written bucket list. Just things in my head I'd like to do in my lifetime.

One of those recent items is completing a full marathon. To begin the story, let me paint the picture for you when I was younger. 

I was THE slowest kid in our class when we first had to complete the 1-mile run in elementary school. I have no idea what my time was, but I remember vividly being the slowest. I don't mean to be incredibly mean, but I was by no means an overweight child; I was average. So it stung a little when I wasn't even as fast as those who weighed a lot more than me.

I went out for every sport in middle school just because that's what you do in a small town. I played volleyball, basketball, and ran/threw in track. I, again, was not very fast or good, but I slowly improved. We still had to do that presidential fitness test I loathed every year. By the end of 8th grade, I was usually about the 4th or 5th girl to finish in the 1-mile run. I placed the same in the 1-mile run in track meets too.

In high school, I didn't run my freshman year in track. I decided to go out for track in my sophomore and junior years. I tried running, but quickly realized I am by no means a "sprint" runner, but I also wasn't fast enough to really be competitive in the long distances. I threw javelin, discus and did long jump instead. We still had to "run" some during practice, but nothing too intense. I also knew I needed to stay healthy since I wasn't really in sports sophomore, junior and seniors years other than cheerleading and swimming. I took the weightlifting class. It was awesome to see myself improve in strength. Though I would question the approach of our teachers. It was always to lift more. Now that I know a few more things about weight training, I know that is not always the smart approach to fitness. I digress...we ran for 15 minutes every other day and then did core work, then weights. Great workout for an hour and a half, really! We still had our fitness tests. You had to run 2 miles in 15 minutes. I did that several times so I was proud of that. I came a long way since being the slowest girl in my class.

In college, I didn't really do much exercise during school. I walked, of course, everywhere so that was a lot of my workout. During the summers, I ran, rode my bike and walked a lot, too. The summer of my sophomore year I got serious about losing weight and making better choices. I ran almost every day and lost 45 lbs.

The story of today. My exercise habits have ebbed and flowed from the age of 19-24. There are months where I really get into it, and long periods I do nothing. When I became engaged, I knew I wanted to look my best so I began running. My sister-in-law coaxed me into the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving. It was hard....seriously. Looking back, I laugh at how easy the out and back, flat, 3-mile course is, but it was hard my first time. I didn't follow the training plan like I should have. It was also 16 degrees that day.

A lot has changed in 2 years (it'll be 2 years ago I ran my first 5k on Thanksgiving). I have since completed 20 or so 5Ks, two 10Ks, and two half marathons. I know to remain healthy and be the healthiest I can be before pregnancy, I have to run. I don't really enjoy it until I see the results or the feeling of completing the long run I have never done before or beating a time. But, I know it's good for me. So what's the next goal? Complete the 2013 OKC full marathon! Not sure what I'm really getting myself into, but I look back and think if you would have asked me two years ago if I ever thought of running 13.1 miles, I would have said, you're crazy. Now I am just fully crazy instead of half crazy, so cheers to 25 weeks of training!

More to come later on training and why the OKC race.

*~*What is on your bucket list? Have you done something you never thought you'd do? Please share in the comments!*~*

How Far Can I Push Myself...

Well here is the big announcement I have waited a few days to let it sink in before I announce it to the world.

I am kicking things up a notch on my running endeavors and am training for a half marathon. I trained for one back in 2008, but never really got to finish the full race because of some injury. I ran only part of it. I really hope I can actually do the event on May 19th in Joplin. This is the newly changed Joplin Memorial Run as it is on the first anniversary of the tornado that struck Joplin and killed 162 people. (On a side note: did you all watch Extreme Home Makeover on its final episode?! Oh my, how much that hit home with my sister-in-law and her husband, Derek, actually helping with the event but also living it each day after the tornado. Derek was featured in a commercial for American Family because of their efforts in rebuilding Joplin.)

The only problem is the night before 3.5 hours north in St. Joseph, my work is going to have its first ever fundraiser, which I am entirely in charge of. So we'll see how "wonderful" I really do at the half marathon on less than 5 hours of sleep. I'm praying my mother-in-law will drive with me so I can catch a bit of a snooze on the way down to Joplin.

So now the hard part...training. I have read lots and reviewed some training and believe I have found a perfect solution. I am using the Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer. I am not training for the full marathon, but the two trainers sure make you feel like you could do one! The training is based on a class at the University of Northern Iowa that has been going on since the late 80s. They have trained all sorts of people, 250+, to run a full marathon in five months. All but one student completed a marathon. That says something about their plan. They are big on saying it's not about the time on your first one, just finishing. I agree with that. I just want to finish, and finish in enough time to where I don't get culled out because I am running too slow. They really push for only four days of training to avoid injury as that is the number one problem (as was mine) of most first-time marathoners. I am using another Runner's World method to reach a 10K distance for now until the middle of February when I can start using the real marathon training. At 2.5 months you should be running a long run of 15 miles with the Iowa training so that would put me at the first of May running a half marathon which is perfect timing. Let's hope it all goes as it should.

Throw in there a bit of Trails West! planning, finishing my master's degree in May, finishing my best MK year yet, Junior League, and oh yah, that little fundraiser/annual campaign we are doing at work which is a HUGE undertaking itself. BUT...you only live once, and I need to do this for myself to say I did it. I would also be remiss if I didn't mention I have a pretty good support group with my brother, sister-in-law who is running in Joplin too, and my best friends, Hannah, who is also training for an April half marathon, and Kelsey, who is a running buddy too. Hannah has been my running buddy since this whole thing started last May. Wow, I just realized that in one year's time I will have gone from walking part of a 5K to "cross your fingers" finishing a half marathon! Whoo to that!

On that note, I'll keep you updated as the progress goes along.

So far these last two weeks I have done 2-3 miles four days a week. This weekend is my long run of 4 miles. ;0 Oh boy!