Fargo Marathon Weekend Recap

I wasn't going to do a recap becuase I was not 100% happy with how the weekend played out. But, I knew that if I didn't write something up, I would be kicking myself for it. So, here goes.

Fargo Marathon Weekend kicked off with the Youth Run Thursday evening. The weather couldn't have been better with 72 degrees or so, a slight breeze and partly sunny! We had approximately 2,000 little kiddos running either in the 1/2 mile race or 1 mile race. There were kids as little as 2 years old running. It was so exciting to be a part of something like this ... and watching kids fall in love with running!

The forecast for the rest of the weekend wasn't looking nearly as good as it was during the Youth Run. Storms were supposed to roll in Friday, leaving us with 70-80% chance of rain and thunderstorms. Lovely.

Friday evening was the 5K. The plan for me, my sisters, brother-in-law, parents, and another friend was to walk the 5K and then run the Half Marathon the next day as part of the Go-Far Challenge. Well, we walked the 5K and the weather was decent, in the low 60's, but extremely humid. I think it is honestly more painful to walk a 5K than it is to run. It seemed to take us FOREVER to finish.

After Friday night's 5K, I knew I didn't have the Half Marathon in me. I wanted to run it so bad. I knew that I probably could have finished the 13.1 miles even if I had to walk a good chunk of it. But, I knew that I didn't want to injure myself further for lack of quality training. It just wasn't there. So, I made the decision to not run it. I was kind of excited to be on the other side of the race, watching, cheering, and taking photos of family members coming to the finish line.

The weather held out. It was in the low 60's again for the morning events, with a few sprinkles from time to time. Over and over again, I heard so many people saying how the conditions were ideal for half marathoners and marathoners. Cool temps, flat route, tons of fans, music at every mile marker, etc.

The excitement of being a fan on the sidelines soon diminished as everyone took off running and I realized I had a good 2-3 hours of nothing to do. I took some more pictures, ran into people I knew who had finished the 10K, and spent a lot of time thinking about my running. I thought about my poor training, about my struggles with random "injuries" occuring just as things seem to be falling into place, I thought about what my goals are, whether or not I want to attempt the HM distance again... etc.

I have an awesome long-sleeved Half Marathon shirt in my closet that I will probably never wear and it bugs me a lot. I feel like I owe it to myself to redeem myself and get back out there. I want to do another half. Someday.

Overall, the weekend was nice and it was wonderful to spend it with family. My brother-in-law completed his first HM. My sister completed her first since being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, and my parents completed there 12th or 13th HM! I am so proud of all of them!!

Three Things Thursday

It's been too long...

• Stress at work is decreasing! with the end of the year approaching us fast (9 more days after today), things are finally starting to slow down a work a bit. Kinda. Almost all of my paperwork and assessments for the year are done. I just need to compile grades and write up progress reports for IEP's next week. YAY!
• It's Fargo Marathon Week! The past couple weeks have been super busy with committee meetings. The Youth Run is this evening and we are expecting over 1,300 kids to participate! Friday my sisters, brother-in-law, parents, and a friend will be walking the 5K. Saturday morning almost all of us plan to run the Half Marathon. However, I am not very well-prepared wtih taking a couple weeks off after my longest run of 8 miles. Eeks. AND... the weather doesn't look to promising. Rain will be rolling into the area late tonight and staying until monday with a huge chance of thunderstorms Saturday morning. grrr..
• Almost Sold! I think it is safe to say I have sold my house, almost. The fourth person to look at it made an offer, I counter offered, she counter offered, and I accepted ... pending an inspection and appraisal. The inspection went will with only having to replace the front door due to wood rotting, and some trimming around another door. A little spending, but it could have definitely been worse. The door has been replaced, I have a little painting to do, and the appraisal needs to be done. We are hoping to close in mid-June! It won't be long before I am back home for good!

April: Month in Review

April has been another crazy busy month. I haven't posted since the 7th, and have had little desire to do so. I am just going to update with some number and such and hope to be posting again in the near future...

Month in Review: April 2011

Swim - 00 yds ....................... 00 yds in March
Bike - 157.63 miles .............. 90.74 miles in March
Run - 11.54 miles ............... 35.27 miles in March


Total Number of:
Swims - 0
Bikes - 11
Runs - 4
BODYPUMP Class - 2
Pilates Class - 0
Yoga Class - 0
REST Days - 12


Highlights of the Month:

• Tried something new - this massively huge stair stepper that looks like an actual set of moving stairs. Doesn't bother my knees while on it, but I did notice that if I am on there for too long, it does start to bother them - like when I was on it for 45 minutes on Saturday - going 3.2 miles and 170-some flights of stairs... my knee was bothering me quite a bit after that.
• Participated in the Great American Bike Race back home with the fiance and friends from his work. The proceeds for this went to families of children with Cerebral Palsy. It was so much fun!

Lows of the Month:

• Ankle pain got worse (only when running - not when walking or biking) - took 2+ weeks off of running. This has killed my half marathon training and I will probably have to switch to the 10K. I am not happy with this at all.

YEAR-TO-DATE:

Swim - 3200 Yds

Bike -441.99 miles

Run - 90.88 miles

I have a feeling May is going to be a better month, all around!