I'd been training for this day for 5 months. It was a massive goal of mine and had made its way on to my bucket list; to run a distance of 13.1 miles, a half marathon.
In May this year, I decided it was time to sign up. I chose the Perkins Great Eastern Run which starts and finishes in my home town of Peterborough, England.
I absolutely love running. It always makes me feel refreshed and it's a chance for me to clear my mind and have some alone time. I knew I was going to have to train hard and push myself and I embraced the challenged. I found a few tips that worked really really well for me, and wrote about them here. I'd been eating *fairly* well and my head was in the game.
And then I got a cold. And a headache. And a sore throat. And earache.
I was absolutely devastated. For a couple of days I really didn't think I was going to be well enough to even give it a shot and get myself round the course. Thanks to the lotions and potions I could get my hands on, and my Mum who ran around caring for me, I managed to gain some energy deep inside and got up on Sunday morning with a positive mind and a 'I can at least give this a go' attitude.
I arrived at the start line with butterflies in my tummy and adrenaline running through my veins. I can do this, I thought. In fact, I can SO do this!
It was a struggle, making my way gently through the first 6 miles and then running and walking after that to give my chest some space to breathe. The furthest I'd run in training was 10 miles so to have to slow down my pace at 6 was a little frustrating, but just how it had to be on the day. The crowd that had come out to cheer and support were amazing and gave me that extra boost of energy I really needed. I finally saw mile 10. I was almost there...almost. I somehow pushed myself through the last 3 miles, forgetting I was even ever poorly and eventually saw the finish line in sight. My wonderful, supportive friends and family were there to cheer me on and give me that final burst of energy to sprint to the finish line. I came in at 2.32.36...and considering I was aiming for two and a half hours for my first half marathon...what a result!
Smiling from ear to ear, I went home, had the best bath I have ever had, a massage from the mother and then a feast of a Chinese with my loved ones to celebrate.
It is safe to say, I will doing another half marathon...hopefully in better health and better time.
* I also raised an amazing £343.00 for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and would just like to say a final, massive thank you to everyone who showed their support and donated to this wonderful organisation.
