Wow, I did it, I ran 13.1 miles!
I can't believe it, I have to keep looking at my strava to really believe that it was me that did it! 2 years ago I couldn't of even imagined that I would be able to run a half marathon, even 1 year ago if anyone had said to me "run a half" I would of said " don't be silly I can't do that" But I have and I am really, really happy with my time.
On the day of the race I was so nervous, I kept thinking I can't do this, what if I don't finish! It had been 2 weeks since I'd done a long run so self doubt had kicked in! My husband came along to support me and take photos which really helped, it makes you feel better when there's someone there cheering you on.
The run was round Snetterton Race Track, usually cars race round it not people. The course was using the track which was 5k and the entrance road to make the mileage up to 7k so we had to do it 3 times.
Weather conditions were really good, it was very cold but there wasn't much wind and the sun was shining. This was good as the race track is very open and lots of people had said to me it would be horrible if it was windy, thankfully luck was on my side. The race started at 10.30am and about 800 runners all waited for the starting gun.
I had written on my hand the pace I wanted to run at but as you do I went off too fast but thankfully I was able to keep the pace going. There was a bridge that we had to go over 3 times, this was challenging especially at mile 11, but I managed to run up and down it and keep running the whole 13.1 miles. I was so proud of myself.
During the race
The finishing time read 2 hours 8 mins 4 secs but my actual chip time was 2 hours 7 mins 36 secs so much better than I had hoped, I had written on my hand 2 hours 15 mins and 23 secs, running a pace at 6 mins 25 secs but I actually ran a pace of 6 mins 1 sec. Amazing
What an amazing day, I was close to tears after I'd finished as I was so overwhelmed from my achievement. My next challenge the London Marathon but training doesn't start till after I've had a well deserved break. A week away on the hot and sunny island of Fuerteventura.
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Happy reading peeps🖤