The Amazing Race: Half Marathon Edition

Two weeks have past since I completed the half marathon in Nice. I flew straight from Nice to Geneva, Switzerland where Doug and I met up for a pastors conference. The days were busy and it's taken me awhile to find the energy to begin to recount the events of the half. Doug gave me this awesome little gift when we returned home from Geneva. His support was stellar from afar.
It was an exciting weekend. I arrived later in the day on Saturday and went over the expo to get my stuff. Fun to see my name listed!  Then I joined my group for dinner that night. The mood was frivolous and fun. An electric mixture of nerves and excitement surrounded us. The race had arrived. Most of us thought we were ready. Nice is a gorgeous place and the course ran all along the sea front. Great, except for the sunshine bearing down on me!
Sunday we woke up, ate some breakfast, got our stuff together, took group photos and got ready to wander over to the starting line.

The entire Women Running the World group from London.

We were lucky that the hotel was almost directly across the street from the start line. It was a warm and hazy morning. We were happy for the cloud cover.

My favorite running pal, Denise, even though she is much faster than I am. 

I felt pretty good at the start. I was pleased with how I had slept and was ready to tackle the goal I had set so many months prior. I had hydrated really well and felt like I had given myself the best shot at doing well.
The first 10K (6 miles) were great. I enjoyed the route and the company. I was feeling fine. The next 5K (3 miles) were OK but the heat was starting to make a difference and I was finding it difficult to cool down. I was squeezing sponges filled with water over my head every chance I could but the sun was now out and it was bearing down a bit much. The course was set up in a such a way that you ran out towards the airport, turned around and came in another 4 miles to the finish. We began seeing some of the runners from our group on their way in and it was fun to see how people were doing. I was happy because my hips, feet and quads were doing well, but the hotness of my head was starting to bother me. Once we made the turn, I was braced for the 4 miles in to the finish line. 
I was still just trying to keep going, putting one foot in front of the other, hoping to not have to walk. I was drinking water at every station and took a couple of boost gels along the way but I could tell that I was running out of gas. It was frustrating as my legs felt good.
Finally a 17K (10 miles) I had to walk a little just to try to regroup.
I was bummed about this as one of my goals had been to not have to walk. And I didn't have to walk because of body aches and pains, but instead because of feeling off balance and overheated. At 18K(11.1 miles) we started to run again. Just 2 more miles. (I was with one of the coaches who was great. She kept encouraging me, trying to distract me, just keeping me going.) I was pretty much shuffling along at this point, a bit concerned about passing out or throwing up. I tried to just keep on keeping on. The last 2K (1.5 miles) were very tough. I was feeling pretty rough by then, overheated and absolutely running on empty. I did finally see the finish in sight and crossed the line. I had finished under 3 hours with only a little walking.
People from my group were there cheering me on but I was in such bad shape that I had to seek out medical help. Unable to find it, a group of us ventured down to the sea where I promptly pulled off shirt and got in the water.

The rocky shore beach of Nice was hard on the feet but the cool waters of the Mediterranean were just what I needed to start feeling more human again.

The fantastic women from church who got me into the business in the first place!

Mugging for the camera after I got feeling better!

Soon after many runners joined us and lots of women started hopping in the water! It was a fun sight.

I was a bit disappointed initially. It was tough to finish so depleted. Didn't get any help from adrenaline. Couldn't enjoy the cheers and clapping, didn't have any sense of the joy in finishing. I was 10 minutes slower than I had really wanted to be even though I got in under 3 hours. I ended up with about a 13.1 minute miles and I had hoped to stick closer to the 12.30 mark. My final time was 2.51. Leaves lots of room for improvement! My fitbit stats for the day were pretty great! 
It has taken me a few days to sift through all of my emotions and disappointments to allow the accomplishment of finishing to emerge as the top feeling. I am really glad I finished. I had just wanted to finish in a much stronger fashion!

Our spectacular and amazing coaches.

I enjoyed a massage in the afternoon. We gathered for our final gala evening and the mood was great. It was fun to sit with my peeps and enjoy some good food and laughter. I was given the job of writing the thank you speech for our coaches. I wrote a song called 3 Days a Week to the tune of 8 Days A Week by the Beatles. Appropriate since we trained 3 days a week in the shadow of Abbey Road Studios. The entire beginning group sang it together. The more serious speech was hard to get through. Tears flowed as I considered the selflessness of these 5 women who urged us on and fought so hard for us. It was interesting to feel the sadness of having the challenge behind us. As I think back to all of the mornings I have spent running this year, I marvel at everything we accomplished. Starting with walking 2 minutes and running for 1 and building up to complete a half marathon. It's pretty special and I will treasure the memories of this entire experience for a life time. And the course was gorgeous!
I will never again be trying to do this for the first time. But as most of the runners told us, at about 18K during the race you will be thinking, "Never again. This is so stupid. Why in the world am I doing this?" A few hours after the race, you begin to consider doing another one and by the next day you are making plans for the next one! I have seen myself wander through these emotions and of course, I am motivated by a desire to improve my time and finish better!

Pre-race, our beginning group plus coaches

I finally got back to running last Friday and did another one today. I love the group, love running around London, love the challenge of getting up and going. I hope to continue but for sure, running alone is not the same as running with my pack. Next year, I will miss meeting up for runs with these women, these touchstones in the week that have given birth to wonderful conversations, heartfelt conversations and friendships that will endure. 

Road to the Nice Half Marthon

I suppose it occurs to me that it is somewhat ironic that the half marthon I've set my sights upon is in Nice (pronounced neece) because the training is not exactly nice (pronounced nighce). So the title of this blog indicates not that it's a nice half, but rather that it in Nice. But I digress.
Yesterday I hit another milestone, a 6 mile stone as a matter of fact! The run was through many of London's iconic places which helped spur me along. Here's the description we received in preparation for the run. 

You really need running buddies in order to accomplish these goals!

"We head to Hyde Park via the usual route. Start heading west on Circus Road and turn left on Grove End and follow south as it becomes Lisson Grove.  Cross over Marylebone Road and continue on Seymour Place until the end.  Turn right and cross over Edgware Road and then left to enter Hyde Park at the intersection with Stanhope Place.   

Run along the eastern edge of the park to Hyde Park Corner, under Wellington Arch and down Constitution Hill.  Run past the Victoria Memorial down the mall and enter St. James Park.  Run over the pond and out of the park, turning left onto Birdcage Walk and down into Parliament Square to Big Ben.  Continue past Big Ben and cross Westminster Bridge. After the bridge turn left to run along the Thames until the river path ends after Southwark Bridge. Borough Market is under the railway bridge near the London Bridge station." Whew! It was fun to get to Big Ben and just keep on running. I remember how nervous we all were last autumn when that run came up on the schedule. The parks look great right now, with daffodils even popping up. 

I knew that Borough Market was across the river from St. Paul's so once St. Paul's came into view, I felt like I might make it! Actually, the only really tough part of the run yesterday was the fiery burning sensation in my right foot. I have had some foot issues and have orthotics that were specially made for me in Sweden, but the longer the runs, the more intense this seeming nerve pain seems to get. I have begun to process of trying to figure out how to see a Dr. here in England so perhaps I can get some answers. I do not want an injury to thwart my progress at this point!

Anyway, Borough market is a super fun place filled to brim with awesome food! A delicious cup of Colombian coffee and a tasty bread stick filled with cheese and olives provided much needed sustenance after the run. All in all, it took 80 minutes and the last 15 were pretty painful. 

I need to get in a 30 minute run over the weekend so will test the foot then. Next week it's 45 minutes on Tuesday and anothr 80 minute run on Thursday. Then we take some rest days.

Now that I've made up my mind to do the half, I'm pretty focused on keeping it together. I'm figuring out my pace pretty well and all in all, feeling good about being able to accomplish the training runs leading up to the end of April. Now, I just gotta get this foot pain to subside! (All photos taken while on the run, so quality not great, but I think you get the picture!)

Milestones and Goals

It is mid-January, 2016. I am still running which represents a minor miracle in and of itself! Yesterday I ran for 60 minutes straight, almost 5 miles! I never thought I'd ever be able to accomplish this so I'm pretty thrilled. My pace is quite slow, about 12.5 minute miles but I am finding the stamina to complete the runs and have actually gotten to a place where I don't want to miss it. 

The view from where I head to catch my bus to the start point every Tuesday and Thursday mornings. 

I still don't really love doing it, but I do enjoy getting it done! And I am very happy for the exercise and I continue to enjoy seeing London whilst running around. Clearly, there is joy in the pack! The only way that any of this is possible is because of the group of women who I have met and who journey with me, an amazing group called Women Running the World! Running alone is still AWFUL. Even a short 35 minute run alone is torture compared to the longer runs with companions. (There's a sermon in there somewhere!). The coaches are these amazing experienced runners who cheer us on, give us advice, and encourage us to keep on keeping on. It's really been quite the highlight of our time here in London and I'm thankful for the 2 women from church who encouraged (pushed, cajoled, etc.) me to start doing it.
(Thanks Tracey and Stefhanie!) 
So, with our timeline for remaining in London finally set, I have been able to set my sights on a bigger goal. (Our last Sunday will be June 5 and we fly to CA on June 7, fyi). 
When I first announced back in September that I was joining a running group, several of you cheered me on. One friend in particular wrote this, "Let us know how this goes. Especially interested to hear if your competitive nature comes out and we begin to read of you running a 5K? 10K? 1/2 marathon? Full marathon?" 
Well, he was right about my competitive nature. I've always done better when there is a prize to keep an eye on and now I've set a significant goal for myself. All credit goes to my running group as the leaders arrange and plan everything necessary for us to be able to complete....drum roll....a half marathon! 
Yup, all 13.1 miles will be run by yours truly on April 24. The best part of the whole goal is that the half will take place in...another drum roll please....NICE, FRANCE! Nothing like going straight for the sweet spot in this girl's heart by asking her to run along the seaside!
So, I'm equal parts excited and terrified. I still have not run more than 60 minutes straight and I know the half will take close to 2.5-3 hours to complete so there is still a lot of training to take place. The schedule is pretty rigorous from here on out but I am committed to getting it done and excited to see how a race of this length will feel. 
I am also excited because the training runs continue to take us all over London. In the coming weeks we'll be running to Borough Market, Canary Wharf, Battersea, Wembley, and Kew Gardens. These places sound so far from our start point and the longest training run is 135 minutes so it's really hard to imagine what that will look like, but the leaders have promised that if I stay with the program, then I will be able to complete the half!
So far the weather has been quite cooperative. It's gotten cold this past week but I have learned to dress well. Mostly I'm relieved that we are not contending with icy streets. Even the rain hasn't been a huge factor most days. And we're catching the sun coming up over the horizon and enjoying the beauty of Regents Park and Primrose Hill as well as the diverse architecture that dots the neighborhoods we run through.

Rugby fields, frosty morning, Regents Park

It has been awesome for me to stay with this! It has been great for me to be able to set this goal and strive toward fulfilling it. I still can't really call myself a runner but I can say that I run and I never really thought I'd even get that far. I'll keep ya posted as the journey continues.