As of this past Saturday, I am officially five weeks out from my first half marathon. Sometimes when I say "first half marathon," I have to stop myself. This isn't exactly my first half -- I've finished Hyner, a 25k, twice. But something about this is different... I think it's mostly because I'm doing it on my own.
Am I prepared? Not really. This fall has been a battle of sickness and business. I'm getting myself out for a run consistently two-three times through the week and typically on Sunday. We have so many fun things packed in on weekends that it's been difficult to commit to an 8 or 9 mile run on the weekend. Monday night, I did end up meeting Josh and Lucy about 4 1/2 miles into my run, so I decided to finish up with another 2 1/4 walking with them. If it weren't for them, I would've called it quits.
I've been experimenting with intervals during my weekday runs and I think - think - that with a combination of running and walking, I should be able to come in under 3 hours and 30 minutes. I run comfortably at 13:30 and walk comfortably at 16:30, which averages me out right at a 15 minute mile.. plus I'm counting on the fact that I tend to move faster in races.
I realize that some people do a marathon in that amount of time, but for me, this seems reasonable and not so scary.
And now it's in on the internet... and you can't hide from what's on the internet. ;)
For the next few weeks, I'm mainly concerned with getting out there at least 3 days a week, watching my food, and experimenting with some electrolytes and energy gels. I'm hoping to find a running jacket I can wear that has decent sized pockets for stashing stuff because I definitely don't feel like carrying a water bottle since there are bathrooms and water every 2-3 miles and, let's be honest, these hips aren't exactly conducive to fuel belts...