Indy Mini : Five Things

This past Saturday I ran my very first Half Marathon. The Indy Mini was a great race. I loved it. I feel so proud of myself for this accomplishment. I trained for a long time to get here and I feel so confident with myself. I started slowly and worked my way up. Short runs/walks everyday of the week and then long Saturday runs increasing distance each week, was the basic training program I used for myself. I also did kettlebell strength training workouts Monday thru Friday. I did a previous post about My Workout Routine here if you haven’t read it before and My Workout Routine: An Update post here. I did miss my personal time goal but only by three minutes so I am taking that as a major win. There was a big crowd at first so it was a little hard to find my own pace which I think lost some time for me. But 2 hours and 3 minutes for my very first half marathon is something I am going to brag about!

Here are some pics from the race that I wanted to share. ^Waiting to start!^

^I was so happy crossing the finish line!^

I really wish I had gotten Westin to take more pictures but I did get a couple. My mom and dad surprised me. I didn’t know they were coming until I saw everyone cheering me on right before I crossed the finish line. They even brought me these beautiful flowers! That was probably part of the reason I had such a big smile on my face crossing the finish line.  ^With my mama!-Not my best photo but I love it anyway!^

^Only Liam would take a pic with me… Jake was too busy eating all my snacks!^

I felt so accomplished and proud (pretty sure I already said that). I might be crazy and a bit addicted now too. I just signed up to run another half marathon on Memorial Day. I want to keep up my running and stay in shape so I don’t plan on taking anytime off. I went right back to my normal everyday workouts this Monday and I plan to do a long run Saturday morning. I will keep you all updated!

Here are five things I have taken away from running my first half marathon…

1. A good pair of running shoes is your best friend. Make sure to find a pair that works for you. These just happened to be my very first pair of Brooks running shoes and I love them. I have only ever heard good things about this brand too.
2. You don’t need a ton of fancy gear or accessories to run. I did train alot in the cold weather and most of my snowboarding gear worked for running as well. I did get this handheld water bottle after I started running much longer distances and these blister resistant socks.
3. Training is so important! Take a longer training time and slowly work your way up. Do not overdo it early on or get burnt out. I paired my running training with strength training as well which really helped my muscles prepare.
4. Make or find yourself an awesome playlist…music keeps me going!
5. Never give up! There will be days you don’t feel like running and just want to quit but make yourself go…have a friend to hold you accountable…you will thank yourself in the long run. Just do it!

I just hope to inspire others to push themselves, stay healthy and not to be afraid of hard goals! Until next week, XOXO!