13.1 bound

This Saturday will mark the day of my very first half marathon and I am just a whirlwind of emotions. At times I feel so excited to finally be doing something that I've always wanted to do and other times I'm just relieved to have it almost over. That's terrible right? Well, when you're going from one injury to the next it can kind of take the wind out of your sail. This Thanksgiving I ran the "Run Thru the Woods" and it was a blast. This run is what actually stirred the desire for the half marathon in the first place. However, this run was 5 miles NOT 13.1 miles! Here's a pic for your viewing pleasure:

We really did have fun. And all of the above girls except 1 (she's now preggers) are part of the half marathon team which is made up of about 30 women. So I wasn't the only crazy one to sign on the dotted line. The first of my injuries consisted of achilles issues which was not terribly painful but just a pain in the you know whats it! Then came stomach issues which was easily fixed by me learning what worked and what didn't. For example a banana and half of a yogurt is good whereas a protein shake and oatmeal bar is NOT GOOD! Like I said - that was a pretty easy fix. Then came back issues which actually stemmed from the stomach pains. I think that my stomach would begin hurting and I would (subconsciously) over compensate by hunching over trying to take some of the impact off my stomach but now putting a terrible amount of strain on my back. Again, easy enough fix. And finally - this was the real kicker - plantar fascittis. A mouthful huh? Here's the gist - when you run depending on what type of runner you are...do you have high/flat arches..do you oversupinate or overpronate...blah blah - depending on all of those factors, you're feet take on a ton of impact. If you don't know in advance how you run, you can really hurt yourself. This is me. I was fitted for shoes (highly recommend Lukes Locker - they KNOW what they're talking about) but I never really used my shoes for what they're intended for - high arches! In the midst of training for a half, I decided to take on a wallpaper removal project (see earlier posts) and only added more damage. Back to the injury - it's basically the ligaments that connect to your heal and down into the arch of your foot start to tear and over time the ligaments become so stretched that they either rip away completely (not me) or the ligaments are just very tender and need adequate rest and support to keep from tearing (me)! Once I found out how to tie my shoes (there really is a specific way with running shoes), began stretches, icing, and KT Tape (the best thing since sliced bread), it's been an easier time on my foot. That's not to say that the pain isn't still there and that after my long runs I don't want to curl up any cry sometimes but it's getting better.

Sigh. What a whiner huh?? Now that I've got that out of the way - I really AM excited about running. Really. Despite injuries and all the mental games that go along with them, I've made some pretty amazing friends and discovered that our bodies are capable of doing the unthinkable - if we only challenge them. What's in the future? Not sure at this point. Running will continue on but I will be taking some rest. I think my body will thank me for it. My ultimate dream would be to run a full marathon and maybe even one day take on the "big kahuna" - THE BOSTON MARATHON! A girl can dream, right? Stay tuned for an "after-the-race" post where I can proudly sport my 13.1 sticker on my swagger wagon!