Mom Went Running: Victory! Mission Accomplished!

You know you are a runner when with five miles left in a half-marathon you think, 'I am never doing this again' and then five minutes after you finish you ask yourself, 'When can I run my next one?'

I saw this quote on an e-card on Facebook last night. It describes me exactly! I spent months training for Pittsburgh's Half-Marathon in celebration of my 40th Birthday. On the morning of the event I was SO excited to get started. I made a mental note that I wanted to be sure to pay attention to the crowds and the entertainment and the funny signs and the Pittsburgh scenery. While I did soak everything in (What an AMAZING experience!), I think that I paid a little too much attention to everything around me and not enough attention to following the running routine I had focused on during my training. By the time I hit mile ten I was way off on my projected times and hit a wall (By the way - my favorite sign along the route said - 'Humpty Dumpty had wall issues, too!). I was tired, sore and couldn't imagine why I thought completing a half-marathon was a good idea. After seeing my family at mile eleven, I rebounded and finished strong. Well - I thought I finished strong . . .

I had given much thought to how I wanted to cross the finish line because I knew they would be taking pictures and I thought it would be cool to have that memory captured on film. I decided to raise both arms over my head pumping my fists in celebration. As I crossed the finish line I did just that - huge smile on my face, arms lifted high, VICTORY! When the professionals pictures showed up in my e-mail and I opened them up I cracked up. My arms are barely lifted above my waist and my face has a look of pure agony! How hysterical is that?!? My mental picture of myself was obviously much better than reality!

The afternoon after the Half-Marathon I was more sore and tired than I think I ever have been in my life. During the weeks that followed I felt a bit of a let-down. I compare it to how you feel after the holidays or after a great vacation. You spend months planning and preparing and dreaming . . . and then the moment is over. I was happy to catch an article online (I'm disappointed that I didn't write down the source!) that talked about the post-race blues. I definitely experienced those!

But here I am today - three weeks post-race - feeling excited again. I am SO proud of myself for setting that goal and accomplishing it. I am extremely excited about the 5k's I have lined up for this summer. Last night I finally went to my first Zumba class since before the Half-Marathon and it felt SO good! My kids are getting more and more excited about being physically active and have some fun things planned for this summer. And I am looking forward to the fall and asking myself, "When are you going to run your next Half-Marathon, Lisa?"