Finally did that long run...

I think I've found my marathon outfit... I finally ran without getting a rash in any weird spots - and I look retarded in this pic... 

So, I finally got to that long run I've been putting off. I had no choice, it's the end of week 12 and week 12 means run 120 minutes. I don't know why I have been so scared, but I have been procrastinating doing it. 

Let me start out by saying that I have not really done a lot to prepare this week. I have been eating healthy, but that's pretty much how I've been eating lately anyways. I haven't gone above and beyond to drink lots of water other than what I usually do, and I have not done yoga or stretched or even rolled my legs with the stick. All of that made me nervous and I was thinking that the run today would not go well. But I just couldn't get motivated enough to do any of that other stuff. 

I also absolutely refuse to get up at 5 am on the weekend. I am just not going to do it. So... I decided to get up at 6:30 which is still not ideal, but doable. Oh oh and I tried a new pre run drink which I am VERY excited about. Remember when I talked about Orgain protein drinks?? Well, I poured my drink into the blender and added one frozen banana. It was delish and it worked out very well. 

source

this is the type of blender I have and it's awesome - source

I wasn't even hungry when it was time to take a Gu although I did anyway. But anywhos, I left my house with a camelback full of water, 2 gu's and my cell phone. Can I say that I absolutely HATE carrying a bottle, so long runs, I use my husband's camelback and it actually works very well. It's weird at first but you get used to the sloshing and it keeps your back cool also. I decided to run 3 minutes, walk 1 minute because that would be slower than my half marathon pace. My house is close to the swamp rabbit trail, so I ran in that direction. The nice thing about running there from my house is that it's fairly hilly the first couple of miles but flat the whole trail. I figured that would give me enough hill variety for Savannah which is not super hilly anyway. I took a Gu at 45 minutes and at 1:30. I also drank a sip of water every 15 minutes the first hour and every 10 the second hour. 

here was my view. It was pretty and quiet (no music). It was also nice and cool from the shade. and by cool, I mean not 90. 

Results: I actually left my Garmin at work so I have no idea my distance, but i think it was about 12 miles in 2:07. I walked the first 5 minutes to warm up and the last 5 minutes to cool down. 

Things I took away from this run:

1. I do some pretty good things during the week to take care of myself without trying that hard
2. I found a great running outfit that keeps my under arms and thighs safe from chafing and isn't too hot
3. I found my pre run drink. I do not have to get up hours before a run because I can make my simple shake and it won't upset my stomach
4. I have no issues running without music. I didn't even miss it. It was nice to be aware of my surroundings and enjoy nature and the people around me. I met two runners that are also doing savannah


This is the biggest one:

I could've kept going. Don't get me wrong, I was tired. BUT I could've kept going. And I think I had a while to go. So that makes me feel better. The other thing is that it shows me that, as I have always believed, Holly's plan is the bomb because I only run 3 days a week, I usually don't run more than 4-5 miles each time during the week, and I ran 12 miles without much issue. I am not sore anywhere. I was able to continue my day as planned. My legs weren't even really that sore while running.


So I take away this: 1) I for sure think I can run a marathon. It may take me a while, but I don't care. My first marathon isn't my time to try to improve significant running time, it's time for my body to get used to running 3+ hours. (let's be real... 5+) and 2) you do not have to run 4-5 days a week to prepare for a marathon and you're runs don't necessarily have to be long. It's the quality of what you're doing versus quantity. And I also think cross training is working.


When I was done, I got to see this: