From 5K to Half Marathon. We did it!

"They" say you shouldn't go from a 5K to a half marathon.  "They" say you should advance from a 5K to a 10K and then, maybe, one will be ready for a half marathon.  Well, I needed a challenge and didn't listen to what "they" say.  I have been trying to lose weight so if I didn't have a reason to get out the door and exercise, I might not be able to keep losing the weight.  My son in-love, the coach, has been wanting to run a half.  This one was the perfect race.  It was close to my home and a reasonable cost.  Puddin' started out training with me to keep me company as well as exercise for himself.  Some mornings we would leave the house at 5 a.m. to walk/run.  At the latest, I had to be back home and in the shower by 5:45 in order to be at work by 7 a.m. Then as the mileage got longer, we were leaving by 4:45 a.m.   It was always dark and sometimes cold, windy and wet as we trained.  Six or so weeks into the training, Puddin's knee was not very forgiving.  It was always swollen and hurting.  His orthopedic doctor suggested he give up running in order for it to get well.  I told him I wanted to keep training.  At this point, I wasn't sure I would be able to run/walk a half marathon, but I knew I wanted/needed to try.  Puddin' switched to his bike for exercise, but still would go with me during those early mornings.  It was so dark, but he pedaled along and always kept me within his sights.  At times, it looked like I was being mugged in slow motion.  Picture a slow runner in the dark being followed my a man with his hoodie pulled up on a bicycle.  In the end,  Nana and Puddin' did this race together along with the coach.  Coach's wife, our oldest daughter, and their little man were also along for the race.   Puddin' has been my biggest encourager and even coming with me to work out when I'm sure he was hurting.  I also received text messages and FB messages from our long distance family.  While running is a solo event, without the support of our family, I would not have gotten out the door.  Much love to you all!

The sign Eli and his mommy made.

We go!  It's also the last time I had the Coach in my sight!  haha

I thought this was a cool picture taken by Becca.  The Coach running by after Puddin' had taken his picture.  Then Puddin' was trying to find me.

Finally, after a killer uphill we had a short downhill.

 Mile nine.  I'm really struggling at this point, but what a sight for my eyes when I see family! Even while training, mile nine was always, always difficult!

This little guy comes running toward me!  It does my heart good to see him.  We "ran" together for a little bit.  Little did I know about five minutes later, the rain starts.  Thank goodness, Coach had supplied me with some gel.  I promised myself I would wait until mile nine to start on it.  Along with seeing family, it gave me a boast.  As I passed the mile ten sign, I smile big.  I knew I would make it at that point.  It was my longest run yet.  Also, I was tempted with the thought that I was a quarter mile from home and could easily get there if I needed.  haha

Finally, I make it through the woods and know the finish line is near.  The rain starts to feel refreshing at this point.  My goal from the start was to "finish".  After that, my goal was to be around the three hour mark and not be the last person to cross the finish line.

Coach ran the whole time and exceeded his goal of finishing in under two hours.  I was super excited about my time.

Now, it's time to celebrate!

My best friend..

Afterwards, they served some yummy gumbo.  I wish I had gotten an "after" picture with Rebecca and Eli too, but it was cold and rainy.  I guess we were ready to go.

This is one of the doctors I work with.  He is always eager to share with all of us at work how to be a better, healthier person.

Being silly afterwards, Puddin' is trying to be short and I'm trying to be tall.  Overall great experience.  To all of those people I whined to before the race, thank you for listening and for always saying "you can do it"! Now my job is to keep it up!