I DID IT!

*Another "catch up" blog...please forgive me. I promise to catch you up on my "real time" life soon.*

I did it ya'll! I ran 13.1 miles and didn't die. Actually, I didn't even come close to dying. I did however come close (so close that it may have actually happened) to uttering screaming some profanity that should never leave the mouth of a sweet Southern girl such as myself.


Here's how it went down. The race was on April 1st . My alarm was set for 5:30am, but my nerves/excitement had a different plan. Wide awake...4am. I got up chugged as much water as I could hold and played every "worse case scenario" through my head at least 5 times each. I had promised myself I was going to go ahead and get my negative thoughts out of my head before I left the house.Once I calmed down, I ate half a bagel, with a lil' peanut butter for protein. I really wasn't hungry, but I knew I'd be starving with no energy if I didnt eat something.  I got dressed (see my outfit choice below) and waited for my friends to pick me up.

Yes, that is a new shirt - tags still attatched. A girl must look fabulous at all time...even when she is running 13.1 miles!

Once my friends arrived, we headed over to the race site, the RBC center here in Raleigh. I had no idea what to expect. As you know from my previous post...this was my first race EVER. When we arrived I saw a lot of people! Way more than I expected. I was able to keep the nerves under wraps and headed in to the arena for 1 last potty break. Yea, 1 last potty break with the other 200 women waiting in line. Once, we conquered the long line I headed to the starting line. I, along with my 2 friends who ran the race with me, positioned ourselves about middle of all the runners.


Before I knew it, the race had begun and we were off! My first 6 miles were the fastest I had ever run. My adreniline was out of control and honestly I wasn't tired at all. Until I hit mile 7. Paula meet tired.  My pace slowed down, but I kept plowing through knowing that I had covered more miles than that in my training. By mile 9 I had caught the most hellacious cramps I have ever had in my lower body. And yes, I said lower body, not legs. Lower body, as in from my hips to my feet. Yet again, I plowed on. The cramps could have very well been from me being old, but I like to think they came from my lack of hydration. Every water station from Mile 7-11 ran out of water. Yes, for real. I finally got water on mile 12 and it seriously tasted like heaven! When I first saw the station with water on it... I thought it was a mirage. But then I actually felt them place the cup in my hand and I knew it was real.


Mile 12 was definitley the hardest for me. It seemed so long and my body was sooooo done. Thank goodness for wonderful friends who screamed me all the way to the finish line! I was even able to pull out a little sprint once the finish line was in sight. Hollllller!

If you are wondering if that's the lamest "finish line" you've ever seen, let me reassure you...IT WAS! What's a girl gotta do to get  streamers, glitter, flashing lights, and a marching band!?!?!

You hear of a lot of people collapsing when they cross the finish line, however my legs were so cramped they wouldnt even bend for me to collapse. It didnt matter though... I had just ran every bit of 13.1 miles and in 2 hours and 30 minutes (my goal time that I never actually thought I would make it just sounded good when I was telling people)! I was darn proud of myself then, and I'm darn proud of myself today. Afterwards, we had a make shift tailgate party (with family and friends who had came to cheer us on) complete with some Champagne popping to celebrate!


I was sore dead for about 2 days and then finally felt some sense of normalcy again. I dont know if I will ever run that far again (unless someone is chasing me), but I know that I did it one time. And that's enough for me.


*A special thanks to Jessie and Reed. Jessie was my training partner thru it all. We put alot of miles on our running shoes in 12 weeks and I know I couldn't have done it without her. Reed is Jessie's boyfriend and he ran the race and was a great motivator as well. A huge thank you to Mary Beth and Elizabeth as well. They are pretty much my running heroes and they came to cheer me on. I got to see them several times during the race and they screamed loud enough for me to hear them from a mile away. At one point, near the end, I told them I was dying *turn on the theatrics ladies and gents*. So they basically told me to suck it up and ran with me along the sidelines until I came to my senses. Yep, they are about as awesome as it gets. There support on that day meant the world to me. *

Here is one final pic that my best friend, Mary Beth took during the race:

I am aware that it looks like the older gentleman in the picture (who is likely old enough to be my Great Grandad) is running PAST me. In order to save face, I cannot confirm nor deny the validity of  that accusation.