Too Many Girls: Race for the Roses Half Marathon...

Hello, I'm back:)

So thuoght I should update on my progress

So...after the Vernonia race didn't turn out to be so ideal I quicky went searching for another.

I found Race for the Roses but it was only 8days after the Vernonia.
I rested up good that week to make sure My legs and knee would be (hopefully) recovered.

I only got a total of 5 miles ran that week b/c I needed to rest...so it was a bit risky but I felt okay about it.

The race was at 7am so I had to be up at 5 to eat and leave by 6am. It felt strange going to a race completely alone but when I put my mind to something, I just have to do it:)

this race was completely opposite from the other...it had over 5,000 people in it between the 3 races: Half marathon, 10K and 5K.

The race starts out going up a small hill toward the Broadway bridge, over the bridge and down Naito until you head up hill for a mile and half to Barbur...I knew this would be a challenge...it is hard to push your self that hard for 1.5 miles to try to keep at your target pace (mine was a 8min mile page target). I have not trained for hills at all and now I regret it. I will be doing that next time:)

anyway...I was SO dead by the time i got to the top of it that I couldn't even enjoy the slight down hill that followed. The next 5 miles is through down town a series of ups and downs as you slowly climb to the NW.

Up until 11 miles I was still on track to hit my 8mile pace but I would have LIKED to have been 2 min more ahead (dang hill!) b/c I knew i would have to account for the fact that miles 11-13 would be slower than an 8 min pace. I was right and when I hit a huge hill at mile 12.6 I wanted to DIE! My legs just couldn't move any faster and trying to climb a steep hill seemed overwhelming...about 3/4's of the way up it, I walked for a bout 10 sec when I told myself to just keep moving!!!

I pushed through it, PAINFULLY and was able to finish the race at 1:46:41.

Had I been TWO MINUTES FASTER I would have hit my 8min pace goal:( Oh well...I feel good about it considering I had just run a half marathon the week before.

My overall pace was 8:08 per mile.

I placed 100th out of the total 1,472 women that ran the Half marathon

and I placed 26th out of the 264 women in my age group (30-34).

SO....In some ways I did reach my goal, b/c my other goal is to place in the top 10% so in both these cases I made that:)

I am starting training AGAIN this Monday and this time plan to step it up with a lot of strength training so hopefully I can hit or BEAT the 1:44:30 goal I have. I've learned from all this that it takes MORE than just running to get faster. I need to strenthen my core and my legs and my arms...so that's what I plan to do:)

stay tuned:)

here's some pics of me coming to the finish line.....