My Busy Few Weeks

No, I haven't given up on blogging, I have just been living it up the past few weeks 😍. It all started with a little family vacation to Disney World. We had a blast and I want to go back. It is really a magical place. I have been myself before but, to experience it as a parent is truly something else. The boys loved it to say the least. I even fit in one very short run while I was there but, who needs running when you are walking an average of 15 miles per day in the parks. I wore a pedometer and I really did average around 15 miles per day. I felt like my legs were in pretty good shape but, I began to question that after a few days into the trip. 

Here are a few pictures from our trip:

So, a week after getting home from Disney, I ran a half marathon.  It was the Run Hard Columbia Marathon in Coulmbia, SC. First, let me say that the expo was great and I wish that I had had more time to browse around. I did score a pair of Hokas, some arm warmers, a pair of running shorts, and some gels while I was there. 

Next, the race location was perfect for me. It's only an hour from home so it was an easy drive up the morning of race. The start line was only a block away from the building I work in so, I was able to park there and run in to stash my personal belongings into my work locker. 

The weather was perfect also. 

As far as my running, it was kind of blah. It was not my best run but, we can't always expect for everything to turn out perfectly. This was a really tough course, and by that I mean there was one hill after another. These were not just little speed bumps, I  am talking, I thought I was going to get a nosebleed from the elevation gain 😅. The first half of the half went pretty good for me all in all. I felt great and was maintaining a great pace. Then, everything fell apart around mile 7. My left hip got really tight and sore (it band again I am guessing 😡). At this point my pace slowed down by about 20 seconds per mile and I was having to stop and stretch my hip out every so often. 

I was really discouraged with myself at this point, and all I could think about were the wrongs that I had done to myself coming into this run. I had not followed my training plan the few weeks before the run, I didn't practice what I preach about foam rolling, and my stupidest decision was to wear a pair of shoes that I have not done much distance in. How stupid could I be.  All of this negativity was getting me down so, I had to make myself think positive. I still finished in a respectable time (2:07 and some change), I accomplished that day what most people can never say they accomplished, and I didn't give up. This was a really tough course and I loved it. Next year I will be more prepared. All in all this was a great race that I will certainly do again.