Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Running my First Half Marathon!

Hello Vidaglammers! I turned 32 this year :-) Which, I welcomed with lots of joy, positive energy, Champaign and chocolate thanks to my wonderful friends and family.

So my two good friends Stephanie and Claudia had the awesome idea of running the Long Beach half marathon, which coincided with the weekend of my birthday. At first I was sort of reluctant to join, because as you all know; I’m a big fan of group exercise and I knew I was going to have to tap into a different source of energy to face this challenge, since it requires a lot of individual strength, focus and motivation. Needless to say, I enjoy running but I have never been a dedicated runner, in fact the most miles I had ever tackled on my own prior to the marathon, were 3 to 5 miles 2 to 3 times week as part of my cardio routine. Last year I ran a 5K, which gave me a good idea of the kind of focus it takes to train to run long distance; but 3.2 miles is a long way from 13.2 So I knew that in order to run 13.2 miles I would have to dig deep, and reach for extra strength and motivation to train and prepare.
This was definitely a learning experience. I trained, running indoors and outdoor as well.

I bought the Nike + ipod Sports Kit, which is like having your own personal trainer. It’s a device that syncs with your iphone to keep track of the distance, calories burnt, pace and it syncs with your ipod, preventing the music to skip while you run. It also lets you assign a “power song” to play when you are in “the zone”. I have to say that this gadget was the most useful tool ever. The cost is only $29.00 and it’s sold where ever Nike products are sold. Nike running shoes that have the Nike+ sign on them have a hidden compartment where you can hide the sensor (as you can see in the pictures posted here).

I have to say, I have a new profound respect for marathon runners, as it takes preparation, motivation and lots of determination. I think the most challenging part for me, was really reaching into myself for the energy I needed to keep on moving. Although a race is essentially a group event and the energy is incredibly contagious, you, as a runner are there on your own, running at your own pace. The first 6 miles where a breeze, as I was used to running this distance from the training sessions, but when I reached 10th mile, my energy started to drop. I was very grateful that right around that time my friend Stephanie tapped me in the shoulder and we where able to finish the race together. Overall, I was happy to have finished the race in 2 hours and 2 minutes as I had set a goal to finish in less than 2 hours. At this point, I enjoy running, I think I will eventually run a full marathon, but I know I will have to prepare myself for a HUGE challenge. Keep motivated! Keep active! Challenge yourself! Motivating you is my motivation!

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