Complete Bluenose Half Marathon – Check!

So, I have officially completed my first Half Marathon! I'm extremely proud that I can finally say that :)

{Me the night before trying on my Bluenose running shirt! The years slogan was "Run Like Your'e 10 Years Old" since they were celebrating 10 years running}

What an amazing experience – the crowds of people, the huge number of volunteers, the people all along the way cheering us all on and my family and friends all made yesterday so incredible. I honestly couldn't have done it without all of your support and am extremely grateful! Interested in a recap of the run yesterday? Here it is :) (Sorry for the lack of pictures, I haven't got pics yet from my family and I didn't have my phone with me but I will add some in later on).

So I got up around 7am and having laid out everything the night before I was well prepared and able to head out at 8:15am to the START line. I was so glad to see that the weather wasn't as bad as I imagined (I was prepared to step outside into freezing weather), but it was actually great running weather – cool but still sunny. Matt and I met up with my Mom, Dad, Katie and Alex and were able to watch the end of the 5k as they ran along the citadel as I was waiting in the start line. Goodlife fitness did a little warm up before we went which was great cause I was so nervous I almost forgot!

{Just before moving to the START line}

The thousands of people were a little intimidating and, as this was my first ever race, it was a bit overwhelming. But once the countdown began and the gun went off it was a lot of fun. I started off with a bunch of people around my goal pace (I started out near the 2h:20m pace bunny) and when we made our way around by Citadel High there was the first water station. It was really neat to see all these people waiting with water and gatorade to hand right to us as we ran by. I thought about stopping at the portapotties there since I had drank a lot of water before the race to stay hydrated but thought it would be better to wait until the next one. Well, I guess that was everyone's idea because at the next water station there was only two portapotties and about 10 of us lined up. I knew it was either wait now or risk feeling uncomfortable and not knowing where the next stop would be. So, I was sad to give up about 5 mins waiting in line but it was definitely worth it. Note for next time though to go RIGHT BEFORE the race starts. (I have a lot of these notes to self for next time lol). After that I was good to go and the next 6 or 7 kilometres were awesome. Around kilometre 10 or 11 things got a bit hard. There were a surprising number of hills in this course (another note to self, run at least part of course before hand to see what it's like) so my legs definitely got a work out.

Kilometers 13 through 18 were through Point Pleasant Park and I have to say those were the hardest. There were a lot of hills and I find the gravel tougher to run on. I could really feel myself slow down at this point too. I still ran most of it but took a lot more very short walking breaks. And as I don't have too much practice running past 14 or 15k my legs were starting to get pretty sore (Note: do more 15k+ long runs before hand). The funny part was it hurt more to walk than to run so I think that was what kept me going for the last couple of kilometres. The last stretch was downhill on Cogswell street to Brunswick which was great and as soon as I could see the finish line I pushed it to the end. I finished very close to my goal time (2 and a half hours) with a finish time of 2h:34m:32s. Since my original goal was basically just to finish, I am pretty happy with this time. The winner only beat me by, oh and hour and a half lol But I know each time I do a run, I can shave off more and more time and yesterdays time was a great start for my very first race.

It was so cool to see all of the people waiting at the finish line to cheer people as they passed the end and I felt such a sense of accomplishment when I was finished. After you were done, volunteers gave everyone a Bluenose 10th Anniversary Medal which was a nice bonus :)

One of the things I loved the most was the whole spirit of the event. All the way through the course people were cheering me on whether I knew them or not and, because many of us had our names on our bibs, I heard many people shout "Go, Shannon, Go!" which was so motivating to hear. It was nice when I did take a walk break people would yell out "keep going!" which helped a lot with keeping the breaks short if I was having a hard time. I must say I ran the majority of the race and kept my walking breaks to max 1 or 2 minutes which I am super proud to say :D

The major downside is the soreness that is running through my whole body lol Right after the race, it was as if I had aged 50 years. I could barely walk and my entire body was stiff. It was like that for the rest of the day with the worst being after sitting down for a while or when I woke up after my much need afternoon nap yesterday. Although I am still a bit sore today, it's actually a lot better than yesterday. I used my foam roller on my legs which seemed to help a lot.

All in all, I had such a great time yesterday and running the half marathon was a fun and rewarding experience. I had trained enough that although it wasn't easy, I didn't feel like dying by the end! :) I can't wait to run another race and hope to find another Half Marathon to run again soon (and by soon, I mean maybe after a couple more months of training so I can get a a better time and have lots of time to recover from this one). 

Thanks again to everyone that supported me through out my journey training for the run and to everyone that sponsored me to help raise money for HSHC. I'm not sure of the exact total but the ten of us that participated in the Bluenose Marathon for HSHC collectively raised over $3,500 to build the new exam room at the clinic! :D

To all my family and friends – thanks for coming on this journey with me. Keep checking the blog as I plan to still make updates as I continue to run and train for whatever is to come next!

Love,

Shannon

Sunday Runday

Completed my longest run yet this morning – 15.39k/1:37:37mins (10:13min/mile pace)! I wanted to make sure to get one last big long run in before I start dialling it back a bit before the race. I will do another long run next weekend but more likely closer to 10k. I am super proud of myself for running this morning since I was not in the mood at all, despite the beautiful weather, and had to force myself to put my running shoes on. Once I was outside and starting running though, I always change my mind. I ran a long the usual route I do at home towards Indian Point but made it much farther than usual. There were some gorgeous (not to mention HUGE!) houses out there and the views were incredible. I had my running playlist with me, my favourite running son being Hall & Oates - You Make My Dreams Come True. It seriously amps me up which is hilarious and is a perfect pace to run too :D I'm glad I accomplished this distance today since I can now feel confident I'll be able to complete the Bluenose Half Marathon in two weeks. Not that I thought I wouldn't finish, but I'm not going to lie, I am imagined myself crawling across the finish line! I think it's safe to say I'll be able to finish it still running :)

I've been trying out different gels and such to find what I like best for fuel on my long runs. I am not a fan of the gels as I find them way too thick to slurp a whole one back while running. You have to chase it with lots of water and it feels like I'm eating pudding :S So I got a pack of GU Chomps Energy Chews in Blueberry Pomegranate to see if those would work instead. Let's just say, I am definitely a fan! They are absolutely delicious and much easier to eat than the gels. Although they don't make it to your bloodstream as fast as a liquid would, I just ate them about 15 mins before I felt I would need an energy boost and they can be eaten very quickly. One pack also holds two servings (so can fuel an 1 1/2 to 2 hour run with one package) and they fit nicely in the pocket on the top/back of my Lululemon Inspire Crops. I will definitely be stocking up on these for my long runs as well as for the Half. Highly recommend these, especially for those who are fans of gummies :)

I really enjoyed my trip home (although it was way too short, I didn't get everything done I wanted to) and am sad I'll have to drive back to Halifax tonight. We managed to get a game of Rummy in last night – Mom was leading the whole time while Dad snuck in at the last second and creamed us all.

{Dalhousie cards with all the buildings. They're actually kind of distracting lol}

I also took a couple of pics on my run that I thought I would share:

{I have a lot of shots of the churches but the tide was out this morning and the sun was shining so I thought it made a nice picture}

{And a little ways up the road I found the Easter Bunny (or Easter Bear I should say?) – I guess he does exist! :P}

Sadly, I lost my water bottle on today's run. I ran with it about a third of the way and left it by the side of the road so I could pick it up on my way back but had no idea where I left it! I even went back after with the car and still couldn't find it. Won't make that mistake again! I'll be using my hand-held water bottle for the race (which I forgot to bring home) which is nice and small and can be refilled as I go.

Happy Sunday,

S

Is it finally Spring?

What a gorgeous day! I had a great sleep in and enjoyed being woken up by the sun :) I made it out for my run around lunch time and did 10.27km/1:11:53 mins. I've been sick the past couple days so I didn't push myself too hard to add more milage. I got to try out my new hand-held water bottle I got from the Running Room a few days ago. I had to adjust it a bit until I learned the most comfortable way to hold it but it was great having water with me the whole way! I added half a Nuun tablet in Strawberry Lemonade flavour (my favourite). There was even a little pouch to bring a gel, although I didn't need one for today's run.

I started with a couple loops around the citadel (I have a love/hate relationship with that hill) and there was a bit of a commotion at the high school with two cops cars flashing their lights. Wonder what was up?

{Somebody's in trouble!}

Afterwards, I continued my run down Young Street. I love running down there and looking at all the beautiful houses. I ended up coming back down Tower Road, turned onto Inglis, up Robie, then down South Street back onto Inglis. I did the loop around to Barrington, then ran down Hollis to end up back at Barrington before reaching the apartment. I like to finish my run off with this hill to get a nice burn in :)

{This was about half way up, my attempt at taking a picture without stopping running}

All in all it was a nice run! And such a beautiful day :)

Afterwards, I ended up working a couple of hours at the lab then Matt and I headed to Bayers Lake, only to discover Costco closed at 5pm! Should have known, I guess I forgot it was Sunday. Oh well, we went to Super Store instead.

Happy Sunday! You know what this means – Game of Thrones!!!!

S

Time to kick some Organic butt

I was actually able to do a medium run yesterday at the gym, 5 miles/55:54 mins. Although it was slow (god, I gotta pick up the pace!) I bandaged up those blisters real good and made it through :) Today's long run started out great. I began by running up and down the citadel a couple of times.

{Nice view!}

It was a good challenge to make myself run all the way up the hill and push through, then repeat. I'm thinking I might move my 5k outside and do the citadel run. The hills should really help my endurance and the view is beautiful.

But alas, the blisters struck again! I continued my run down Young Street and the bandaids lost hold. The pain was almost unbearable so I had to turn around and head home :( Serves me right, I should have just let them heal in the first place. My exam is tomorrow so I will take a rest day then depending on how they are Tuesday I may take one more day. Then I will make it up during the rest of the week! I'll be sure to get my 16k down sometime during the week.

Had to go into work this morning after my run. Good thing I stopped by Starbucks for a pick me up!

{Yum!}

Now the rest of the day will be devoted to becoming an expert in Organic Chemistry. Wish me luck!

S

Very (Point) Pleasant Park Run

What a beautiful day it was today! Slept in a bit this morning and it felt great. Managed to get myself up by 10 to get ready for today's run. I thought I would change up my running route and go through Point Pleasant Park. I didn't even really know it existed until our lab had a picnic there last summer. It was way bigger than I thought with lots of cool things to see. There were also tons of people walking their dogs, other runners, and parents playing with their kids, such a great atmosphere to run in! Got some cool shots of some of the sites on the way. The time goes by much faster when I run outside. Although I do love running on the treadmill since I can have my water with my all the way and can catch up on my fav shows, the time does seem to trudge by sometimes. I like mixing up my runs inside/outside. Since we haven't had too much of the Spring weather yet, sometimes I just don't feel like facing the cold and love the warm comfort of the Y :D

Here are some shots from my run this morning:

{I love running by the tracks, really neat view}

{It was cool being able to chose the terrain I wanted to run on, mixed it up between the gravel paths and the trails}

{Saw this little guy literally jump from a different tree onto this branch, pretty cool!}

MapMyRun.com had a hard time mapping my run through Point Pleasant since there were some main trails it just didn't want to go down. It was also crazy difficult to know exactly what paths I followed since I'm not very familiar with the park. So I'm not quite sure how much milage I accomplished today, I was aiming for 13k but I think it may have been closer to 11 or 12k (1h:22mins). Still a good run but next time I may do most of run outside of the park and just run the main stretch mid-way through, then I can know for sure how much distance I covered.

Last day of classes (in my case class) is tomorrow! I'm excited to not have to work late three days a week to make up for the lost time spent walking across campus. I'm thinking I will take advantage of the extra time and add another running day during the week :) May 19th is creeping up fast and I'm going to be ready for it!

Night.

S