I promised myself (and several friends) that I would run the
San Francisco Marathon. Well, the half. But anyway, three years went by
and each year I had an excuse. I’m getting married and my summer is really
packed. I’m in grad school and I can’t
possibly find time to train. I have a wedding to go to that weekend. I’m the master at making excuses and putting
things off. That’s why I wrote my undergraduate thesis in a period of 48 hours.
But what I didn’t realize is that I made that promise for a reason even if I
didn’t know it at the time.
Running connected me with a community. It’s one of the
reasons I fell in love with the sport. But somewhere between undergrad and
graduate school, I lost sight of that wonderful byproduct of running. After I graduated (for the last time!) and
settled into my career I noticed a void that I couldn’t quite put my finger
on. I had my degrees. A wonderful
husband. Beautiful family and friends. And a job I love. What else could I possibly need?
After some soul searching (interrupted by a lot of Pinterest
and Facebooking), I realized that what I had lost in those years was something that
I did for myself, but also connected me to a community in a larger way. I had been running -- albeit sporadically –
but not really engaging with it. I knew
I needed to get myself out of the rut and back in the groove. And thank goodness for a visit from an old
friend from high school who reminded me about my 3-year-lapsed promise. I had my answer!
In the Fall of 2011 I signed up for my first half marathon and my first race in (gulp!) 8 years! With my registration complete and training
plan from Jojo in hand, there was no turning back!
Training was daunting. I had a terrible experience with
over-training and stress fractures in high school – so every step and every
miles I crossing my fingers that I was staying healthy. Each week my long run gradually increased and
every morning before my long run I would get butterflies. While I was excited that I was progressing in
my training and upping my mileage, I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to do
it (Seattle has hills, but San Francisco has HILLS) and terrified I would let
the mental game get the best of me (13.1 miles is a lot of time to talk myself
out of anything). But a solid training
plan from a trusted running friend, the gchat conversations with Nellie that
put my worries at bay, the support of my
husband pushing me out of our front door every Sunday morning, and the
encouragement and company of my running buddy, Laura, all got me through it.
 |
| SFM Start Line |
July 29th – San Francisco Marathon race day
arrived and I was ready. Nervous at the
start line, but determined to enjoy each step as a celebration of my training
(wise words from one wise friend), I was off and running my first half
marathon. Feeling stronger and more
empowered with each passing mile, I couldn’t help but smile each step of those
13.1 precious miles. 2 hours and 10 minutes later I crossed the finish line in
Golden Gate Park and I am forever grateful for my people and my community who
helped me every step of the way. I am also super grateful to the SFM – a race
that restored my faith in myself as a runner.
If you are interested in running the San Francisco Marathon
(half or full!) – happy to answer any questions. If I can do it – you can do!
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