Finish a Half Marathon

“There is something to be said about having a strong, consistent running base. I may have had the most half-assed training “plan” in the history of half marathon prep, but consistently clocking over 35 miles a week was obviously a huge benefit. I never felt like I was going to die. I didn’t walk. (This was back when I didn’t realize it was okay to walk in races – I figured if I did I’d be immediately outed as a ‘fake’ runner or something.) I ate some gummi bears at about mile 9. Someone at mile 10 told me I was nearly there and I thought I must have missed mile markers and already be approaching the finish. (And yes, I cursed that spectator for at least half a mile when I saw the big, shiny “11” on the next marker.) And then there it was, the finish line and I felt okay. I felt more than okay, actually, because I sprinted for nearly the last quarter of a mile.”

“I stopped my little cheapie Timex watch that was basically just a stopwatch. A fancy watch would have been lost on me – I knew how many miles I ran because I methodically plotted out my course on Map My Run beforehand and the word “split” would have brought to mind either gymnastics or bananas. I looked at my time and wondered if that was good. I not only didn’t have a goal or a plan for the race, I didn’t even really know how long, or what pace one should run 13.1 miles. I kissed Fran, ate cookies, celebrated with free beer, congratulated my cousin when she crossed the line, then went back to my mother-in-law’s house and showered. I kept waiting for my body to fall apart, for my legs to feel like they’d been pummeled. When I realized I felt totally normal and had accomplished this big thing I never would have imagined I could – well, that was a pretty life-affirming moment for me.”

“We traversed Brooklyn roads for the first 10 miles, delighting in running on an empty highway before entering Prospect Park for a hilly finish, where I hit new levels of runner’s high: I was aware my body hurt, but the pain felt distant, as my mind relaxed into a feeling I can only describe as Zen until I hit the final half-mile, when all I wanted was to cross that finish line.”