Fit for Life Half Marathon recap

Last Saturday I ran the Fit For Life Half Marathon! It was my third half marathon in 84 days that means that I am qualified to become a Half Fanatic! Considering I have only ran three half's total doesn't seem like I should be qualified to be a fanatic but I guess if you run all three in such a short amount of time that must show you are some kind of fanatic right. I really want the awesome half fanatic race shirt!

Back to the race recap. Packet pickup was Wednesday and Thursday before the Saturday race. I recevied my bib and a tech shirt, the rest of the "goodies" that normally come with packet pickup were emailed to me a few days before that. Random fact: One of my B.R.F. (best running friends) actually got to pick the color of the shirt because she called to find out what the shirts looked like 3 weeks before the event and they told her to pick the color. Pretty cool!! The race started at 7:30 in the parking lot of Hawks Stadium. The course was an out and back along the Boise Greenbelt. My last half 3 weeks ago actually started where this race had it's turn around point.

I was warned ahead of time by a friend that they didn't have tons of water stations along the course so I brought my own. Also they only had water and gatorade along the course, no gels or anything. It is kind of a good thing that I am an over researcher because otherwise I might have assumed that enough water would be provided that I would need. Also on their website they do not list where the porta potties are located. I know why they didn't list it...because they only had one porta potty. It was at mile 4, since the race was an out and back race I guess I could have used that one porta potty again at mile 9. Thankfully it was an area I knew well since I run the exact location on my lunch break at work and with my training runs with Boise Run Walk. I was able to point out along the course to others where the "secret" bathrooms were that weren't far from the greenbelt but unless you knew about them you would run right by them. FYI: The "secret" bathrooms are located around miles 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 (there are only three but with running back on the same route you get to enjoy them twice).

The first half of the race I was running strong and then I realized maybe I started out a little too fast. Plus my lovely IT band started to sing. I am so sick of that stupid IT band trying to talk to me when I am running. I just want some peace and quiet during my races! Is that too much to ask?! Anyway so at mile 10, I decided that I just wanted to be done with the race, I was tired (silly me thinking I could push myself too much) and hurting (I hate you knee). I sped up, annoying my knee further, and after a mile found one of my friends. I called her on the phone to let her know I was stalking her. I ran faster to catch her and we got to enjoy the last 1.5 miles of the race together. We arrived back at Hawks stadium where my husband and kids (my friend's too) were waiting for us. Like any race, you want to finish strong. What happens if a kid walks into your running path? You dodge him and make an awesome "oh crap" face then you pray that is your awesome finisher photo! Well I am in luck! It is my finisher's photo however it doesn't look as awesome as I had envisioned.

After the race they had free hot dogs and beer, water and some gatorade. After a race I want chocolate milk. After doing a bunch of races I now realize that maybe this isn't a standard thing that every race carries. Last year this race had chocolate milk (I did research), that knowledge is what fueled me the last mile of the race. However no chocolate milk this year :( The Race to Robie Creek had chocolate milk (lots and lots of it, I had two), See Jane Run had chocolate coconut milk (it was frozen and they gave me two to enjoy once they thawed), Fit for Life gave me none. I'm still bummed out!

Overall the race was cheap and a pretty area to run. They had 300 runners doing the half so maybe if it were a bigger race and had more man power then we could enjoy more water, maybe orange slices or some gels along the course. But then the race wouldn't be so cheap and low maintenance. It is a race I would recommend to others assuming they did their research and knew what to expect when!

Did you race this weekend? Did it have chocolate milk? What do you look forward to enjoying after a race? 

See Jane Run Half Marathon Race Recap

Yesterday was my second half marathon and my first flat one. I knew that since my last half was up a mountain this one I should get a PR easily. I was right! I PR'd by 41 minutes!!! Super excited about that number.

Now back to all the exciting stuff about the race. The race started nice and early at 8am. I was running the half with a few of my sorority sisters and some fellow MRTT members. Given that we like racing and dressing alike we all wore sparkle skirts!

The race started right on time and we were off! The race started on the Boise Greenbelt and after about 7 miles it switched to sidewalks through a subdivision. The sidewalks were rather annoying since they were so windy. After 2 miles we were done with the subdivision and back on the Greenbelt (YAY!). There is so much more to look at on the Greenbelt then winding through a subdivision.

Very shortly after the mile 11 sign my leg decided to hate me. All of a sudden my left leg felt super heavy and numb. I had to walk immediately. I sent my running buddy ahead because I didn't know how long I would be walking. After a minute or so I started running again. My leg seemed to be better then it happened again. I started walking again. After about 30 seconds this wonderful woman came and gave me encouragement. She reminded me that we were close to the end and told me to run with her. She was exactly what I needed at that moment plus she even shared some water with me, a complete stranger. The last mile and a half flew by. Finally I see the 13 mile sign. I am thrilled and picked up my pace so I would finish strong then my leg went crazy again. I refused to walk the last .10 of a mile so I started a limping run to the finish line. I finished with the time of 2:33:52. Not the goal time of 2:30 that I was hoping but very happy with that time considering my leg went crazy.

After the race I enjoyed an awesome massage, champagne, chocolate and completely frozen chocolate coconut milk. I was really bummed that the chocolate coconut milk was frozen because I was really looking forward to chocolate milk after the race. I also had the opportunity to meet Sara from house bella. She is also a SJR Ambassador. This was her first half and she rocked it! I also had the pleasure of meeting Lori, Owner and CEO of See Jane Run. I wasn't able to find Tanya from Running in Boise, another SJR Ambassador, after the race but I did see her running far ahead of me at one point in the race. All the people who put on the race and the volunteers were great, very friendly and helpful!

Thank you to See Jane Run for a great race with some great friends! Can't wait to run for Champagne and chocolate again next year!

Did you run this weekend? Do you know what happened to my leg? 

My first Half Marathon

I did it! I am a Half Marathoner!!!! I ran what is said to be the Toughest Half Marathon in the Northwest. 

I have nothing to compare it to as it was my first half marathon but I will say I ran it with a smile on my face the whole time! Before the race I spent a lot of time at the stamp station. They had many Shakespeare themed stamps along with stamps from all the previous years. I was covered with Shakespeare's head, dog prints, the outline of the half marathon route, and even a MOM stamp. I also loaded up on Powerbar gels and sipped some water while waiting for the race to start. 

 The race started at high noon with perfect running weather. Within half a mile we were already climbing our first hill. The energy from the people lining the streets to cheer for us and wish us good luck was amazing! I was racing from side to side giving little kids high fives! The first drink station wasn't until mile 2 but one sweet little girl and her family were handing out cups of water about a mile into the race. Many people appreciated it. The first few miles were uneventful with the exception of the beautiful view of Boise every now and then. Around mile 4 my crappy knee started aching. It started out as something small and quickly grew to throbbing pain. Finally the uphill part of the course ended after 8.5 miles of it and we had hit the summit. At this point my knee was feeling horrible but I grabbed a gel and used it like a stress ball as we descended the hill. As we started running downhill at first I ran with a limp and then I learned to ignore the pain (the best that I could) and just enjoy it. We passed a bunch of people who I tried to cheer on and encourage them to keep going. A few looked at me like I was crazy and it was strange I was still so happy after the mountain we had just climbed. I was on cloud 9 and no one was going to bring me down. As I ran around the last bend in the road and finally saw the finish line I increased my speed. I saw the photographer and saw the lady in front of me and smiled as I sprinted passed her right before we finished. I wanted that memory forever. However my finish line picture was less than stellar so I guess I have to run Robie Creek next year just to get a better finish line photo. But I did it! I ran my first half marathon! 

I already can't wait for next year. I plan to train better for the hills and also not be injured going into the race and hopefully shave off at least 30 minutes from my time this year. I would run the Race to Robie Creek again just for the view alone. This is where the finish line and after party took place. Can you think of a prettier place to finish a race.

A few days ago I started my Spring Training with Boise RunWalk. I am really excited to improve my half marathon time and get some great running advice and tips and find people who want to run races with me! The first day we ran at intervals, two minutes of running then one minute walking and repeat. Apparently running intervals in a half marathon or marathon will help improve your time and help you save energy and finish stronger. I want to improve my time but it always made me feel good to say I can run ____ amount of miles without walking. We will see if I stick to this training program. 

Have you tried run/walk intervals during a big race? What's your experience?