Does anyone else remember the one hit wonder, Chumbawamba song, "Tubthumping?" I know, weird title, but I love that song! Honestly, half of it makes no sense. I just love the part that goes, " I get knocked down, but I get up again.You are never gonna keep me down." It's something I try to live by and man, is it true with this whole running thing! I'd be lying if I say haven't been discouraged. Honestly, I have the tab for my blog bookmarked so I see it every day and I still didn't realize how long it had been since I had written! I do believe it's high time for an update.
Running. Just, wow. I have not given up but I had NO idea what I was getting into last March! To get straight to the point, no, I have not run a half marathon yet. I am not angry, though! Since I started running more than one mile sometime last March I have run 2 Girls on the Run 5k's, a Firecracker 10k ( OMG the hills... talk about a a fun time for my first trail run), Women's Distance Festival 2 mile, Blues Stanley Cup Champion 5k, Hot Chocolate 15k, and the NHL All Star 5k. That's a total of 7 races and I have another 10k next week.
Since I started training, I have learned SO much that I didn't even realize I needed to know about! For instance, I have hip dysplasia! So a lot of the pain I was having was due to the fact that one leg is longer than the other and the hip joint pops out of socket. I needed shoe insoles. ( I cannot thank Runwell in Edwardsville enough for that.) Also, my heart rate kept shooting up when running. I know, that sounds normal. I'm talking like I was having a conversation with a friend while running, feeling fine and my heart rate was nearly 200 bpm. Turns out, I should definitely eat more before running/ take sugar pills because I'm hypoglycemic and I definitely should NOT take pre-workout. This also caused some strain on being able to keep a pace that I would like to have but it's alright; baby steps. I learned that treadmill long distance running is the devil and flip belts are God's gift to me because when you start running long distances, you become a toddler again. EVERYTHING is annoying! You can feel a light jacket slightly bounce. How dare a headphone cord swing an inch! I'm telling you, it's a real thing. Seriously though, flip belts and compression socks are the best.
Another interesting thing I didn't think about- water intake. Oh my word. I cannot express the feeling of relief it as to finish my first 10k. The only thing on my mind was BATHROOM. The bigger runs have porta-potties and such but not those trail runs and who wants to have to stop when you're trying to keep a certain pace? Do you remember being a little kid and getting in the pool to realize you needed to pee? If you're a girl, how TERRIBLE it was to get out of that one piece to go? Imagine needing to go, feeling exhausted and instead of water, your clothes are stuck to you with sweat. This all comes to my point of not just drinking all of the water you can get your hands on. Don't dehydrate yourself by any means! But, only drink what you need.
In closing,no, I haven't run a half marathon yet, but I will. When I can, I will. I will also continue to learn as much as I can and be proud of my progress.
Much Love,
Ashley
