II long sleeved top II similar tank II shorts II
Last Sunday was finally the big day…I ran (and finished!) the Seattle Rock and Roll Half Marathon! Because of my past struggles (read here and here to get up to speed) this was a huge accomplishment for me. While training for the race I kept saying this will probably be my one and only half marathon because I kept dreading my long runs on the weekends. Come race day though…I was excited and surprisingly had a lot of fun!
Leading up to the race the past few months I was doing 1-2 short runs (3-5 miles) during the week and a long run (increasing my distance each week) on Saturday or Sunday. I was lucky enough to have a great training partner who pushed me each weekend and helped me set a great pace. We were running about 8:30-8:45 minute miles during training. I was also mixing in HIIT, yoga, and barre during the week. I worked up to 10.5 miles 2 weeks before the race then did 8 miles the week before. I figured if I could do 10ish I could do the last 3 miles on race day.
The week of the race I tried my very best not to drink any wine (I caved and had a glass Thursday night) and tried to eat well and get in all the fluids! Every night I stretched and foam rolled. On Tuesday I did a 3 mile jog then just did light walks and upper body Wednesday-Saturday. I wanted my legs to be fresh come Sunday.
My girlfriends Katie and Hilary came into town to run with me. The girls got into town Saturday morning and we headed straight to the expo to pick up our bibs and hopefully snag some swag. To be honest the expo was a little disappointing…the sponsors were average (I know I’m a brand snob though) and the freebies weren’t anything mind-blowing. But we got our bibs and a few Clif bars and headed on our way.
II Sweatshirt II
So cheesy, but had to take this pic 🙂
The hubs was a rockstar all weekend and cooked for us and was on dad duty a lot. Saturday night he made us a yummy pre- race dinner of miso glazed salmon, pesto pasta, and salad. Oh and cookies for dessert 😉 The race started at 6:30am Sunday morning, so we hydrated, foam rolled, and called it an early night!
Race Day
We were up early and the nerves were flowing! I ate 1/2 whole wheat bagel with peanut butter and a banana. I also had one shot of espresso and a little water (I didn’t want too much liquid in my tummy).
The weather was looking questionable all weekend in Seattle, but the rain held off and it was a gorgeous morning to run! We took Uber to the race and it was PACKED! We looked it up after and there were 20,000 participants there. My goal was to take it easy the first few miles and get into a groove…with that many runners there was no way you were going to go too fast in the beginning. It seemed really crowded almost the whole race…I felt like I was weaving in and out of people up until mile 12. There were a few good sized hills, but also some flats and downhills to break it up. I stopped at most of the water stations to grab a quick drink and took an energy chew about every 3-4 miles. I was surprised how good my body felt and how much energy I had throughout the race. It wasn’t until mile 12 that I was like ok I’m ready to be done and that last mile seemed to take forever!!
The energy during the race was contagious. There was a great crowd throughout the course and always something interesting to look at. People had funny and motivational signs made and I also saw someone pushing a wheel chair- so inspiring! People run races for so many different reasons and there is a lot of heart and determination…it’s such a motivational environment to be in.
My friend let me borrow these headphones for the race and they were a life saver. I just listened to a random Spotify playlist (next time I will probably put more effort into a good playlist). You would think a Rock and Roll Marathon would have good music right? There were a handful of bands playing throughout, but it wasn’t anything special and I’m glad I had my own music to listen to.
Overall, I think it was a good first half marathon for me, but I’m not sure I would run another Rock and Roll Marathon in the future…it was so crowded, I was not impressed with the expo before and after the race, and there was not a lot of music…BUT I’m so down to run another half 🙂
mandatory post run selfie
Time to party and relax! My husband made us yummy breakfast burritos and of course mimosas when we got home. It started to rain, so we decided to just get cozy and drink champagne and watch movies all day! We ended the day all 3 of us snuggled on the couch with takeout burgers, fries, and champagne watching a chick flick. Great girls weekend in the books!
Thank you all for your support and running recommendations along the way. I really appreciate it!
