I decided to run the Resolution Run on January 1st, 2016. I ran that race with two great friends. One of them is an avid runner who's completed countless half marathons and marathons. She suggested I join the track club, commit to running their 4 race series, and commit to running 1200 miles in 2016. I thought she was nuts, but I was intrigued. I am a person who likes and needs goals and accountability. I knew committing to these goals (even if I didn't complete them all) would at least encourage me to stay active in 2016.
Prior to 2016, I had only run 4 or 5 races. Those races were spread out over a 5 year span. I really didn't have a big desire to run races. Now I understand that committing to races is a great way to stay active. During 2016, I ran 9 races: 3 half marathons (1 crazy hard one), 1 crazy hard 15k, 1 crazy hard 8 miler, 3 10ks, and 1 5k. That day we ran the Resolution Run and casually discussed all of these crazy goals, I had no idea I would actually accomplish them! I'm humbled and grateful that I was healthy and able to complete all of these miles, and races and see lots of success in 2016. The Lord was so extremely gracious to me. Glory to God!
When you run 1200 miles (or more) in one year, you learn a whole lot about yourself as a runner. Committing to run all of those miles, made me a better runner. Yes, I got a little faster this year, but more importantly, I learned so much about my ability as a runner. I also gained confidence in my abilities. Long runs became less scary and I developed a love of distance running. I could go into a lot of technical details here, but I won't. And a lot of it, I don't even know that I can explain. The more I ran, the more I loved it. I learned to not let bad runs mess with my mind and discourage me. I learned to run in unpleasant conditions and be comfortable being uncomfortable. All of it, the good runs and the bad runs, was a blessing. I am grateful.
With this new found love of distance running and with 4 half marathons under my belt, I decided to go for the marathon. I really wanted to run a marathon in 2016. I found one in December that was nearby and I planned to run it. Training was set to start when it was still hot and humid here in Alabama even though it was fall and should've been cooling off. I also had to work around Nate's soccer schedule (Darren was also coaching his team) and two other races that I had already committed to running. So I decided to wait for another time and it was like a weight was lifted. I was so thankful to not have the pressure of marathon training in the middle of a busy soccer season.
Mercedes Half Marathon, February 2016
I felt like this was my first legit half marathon. I felt strong and energetic the entire race. I also had a plan for the race and the race actually went exactly how I planned/prepared. What a blessing! My new half PR was 2:13:13
This sweet guy braved getting up before 5AM and below freezing temps to cheer me on. Another sweet blessing!
Rock-N-Roll Nashville Half Marathon, April 2016
So many fun friends to enjoy this race with! This race was a tough one! It was so extremely hilly and I crashed hard around mile 10. It did not go as planned. ;) I was able to finish the race, but definitely not the way I wanted. Still a great weekend in Nashville with great friends.
This was Darren's first 5K! He told me he was going to start running after Mercedes and he did! So very proud of him. He had a great first 5k. :)
The fall ended up being a season of many successes for me. I got PRs in the 5k, and half marathon. My favorite was a local 5k, Footprints. Darren and I both ran. He was second place male and I was second place female. He was second overall and I was 5th overall. It was a small race, but it was still fun to be that close to being first. I'm never close to being first. ;)
The last race in the 4 race series was in early November. My friend, Steve, ran this series too. He's been running for years and has complete several marathons and Iron Man triathlons! This race is named after the Vulcan statue in Birmingham. Here we are with Vulcan. :) This was another great race for me.
My last race of 2016 was the Panama City Beach Half Marathon. I had a 8+ minute PR. Darren ran the 5K and got a PR and first in his age group! We also got to see several other local runners accomplish goals and one even qualified to run the Boston Marathon for the second time. Icing on the cake, Darren and I got to spend the entire weekend away in Panama City kid free!
Since I decided against a marathon in 2016, I decided to train for the Mercedes Marathon that's February 2017. It's close by in Birmingham and lots of other friends would be training/running too. My training was going surprisingly well. My first long run in new territory would be 15 miles. I ran it pretty easily on December 17th. The following Saturday, Christmas Eve, I would run 16. I started the 16 mile run feeling great, shockingly good. I would reach my 1200 mile goal during this run and have a new distance PR. Everything was going great till mile 4, right about the time I hit the 1200 mile mark. I started having very intense heel and arch pain that worsened through out the rest of the run. I ran 12 more miles in pretty intense pain. When I finished running, I couldn't even walk without limping. This was so disappointing to me because I felt great otherwise. I had lots of energy and felt strong. I knew it was bad when I was still limping the following day. I ended up getting an MRI to make sure I didn't have a stress fracture. The MRI showed plantar fasciitis. Some days were so bad, the only relief I could get was wearing a boot. I finished the last week of 2016 in a boot, definitely not how I hoped to finish the year.
This was not the way I wanted 2016 to end. I wanted to continue marathon training feeling strong. I definitely didn't want to be dealing with an injury that would stop me from running for several weeks. But, I had way too much to be thankful for to let this get me down. What will 2017 hold? I have a feeling it will look a lot different than 2016 and that's ok. To be continued...
