EPTMy girlfriend talked about going to do the Disneyland half-marathon with her family. 13.1 miles through Disneyland to California Adventure to Angels Stadium and all the way back to Downtown Disney. I knew already that it was pretty far but she seemed so motivated to do it so I couldn't say no.
$125 dollars and a few forms later, I was officially registered. We were about 6 months away from the run date and soon enough, training would begin, or so I thought. My girlfriend and I wanted to begin training as soon as possible, so we can get into shape and have our cardio be up to par with everyone else. Unfortunately, my girlfriend and I are like in terms of motivation or lack there of.
Now I never felt overweight or even terribly out of shape, but after my first week of running, I could feel that I am no longer do what I used to be able to do. In high school, I was part of the drama dept, vice president of the drama club, and was in several musicals and plays. Doing those musicals were my exercise and kept me in shape. People may not know, but singing, dancing and acting on stage all at the same time, 6 days a week for a whole month is pretty exhausting. In high school, I used to be able to run 6 miles with ease, but now, I'm struggling with even 3 miles. I knew if I kept at it, I will improve, so I did.
As the months pass, she runs about 3 - 5 miles a week. I run about 10 - 12 miles a week. I began to find motivation through finding new music mixes or old mixes that I haven't heard before every week and running with them. In doing so, I focused less on my legs and feet, but more on my the sweet tunes going through my ears. Soon enough, I was able to do 9 miles in one running session, which to me, was mind blowing. I felt more and more ready for the half-marathon after every running session.
The weekend of the marathon was coming up but, I completely forgot about an event before it. My girlfriend's cousin was having a wedding the night before our morning marathon run. All of us running we worried that we wouldn't get enough sleep for the run and it would throw a lot of people from their rhythm, including myself. During the wedding, we tried VERY hard to not drink any alcohol, avoid long instances of dancing, and break our diets. I didn't have a single sip of alcohol, however I danced for majority of the night and I ate so many rice krispy treats, strawberries, and marshmellows dipped in a chocolate fondue, I lost count.
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My girlfriend and I
The night winded down and we all went to bed at midnight at a hotel next to Disneyland. We had to be a the starting line at 4:45. We all got about 4 hours of sleep, which to say the least, was not ideal. The streets were all shut down, so we had to walk to the starting line, which was a blessing in disguise because it was a good warm up and allowed my body to get used to the temperature. We all get to the starting line, headphones go in, and we begin our run. I told my girlfriend that I would stick with her through the whole run even if she ran at a slower pace than I typically do.
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My "Lets Fucking Do This" music
Miles 1-6 go by so quickly since there were all inside Disneyland and California adventure. Lots of stuff to look at and be distracted by to avoid thinking about how many more miles to go. My girlfriend needed to stop every now and then. I'm there motivating her and giving her support.
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Mile 6.5. Going down a small incline with the sun greeting us.
Miles 7 - 9 go by slower than 1 - 6 because we are finally in the streets heading towards Angels Stadium.
By mile 10, I begin to feel a pain in my left knee. It hurts to put pressure on it, but I just put my music higher and ignore the pain.
Mile 11, the pain increases and I'm finding that I am taking more breaks than I would like, but if I continue to run, the pain will only get worse. So I slow my pace a lot and walk when needed.
Mile 12, I feel an immense pain in my ankle which causes me to walk instantly. At this point, I am getting frustrated. I'm not even tired or out of breathe, but I can't push myself because the pain is so immense.
Mile 13, my last mile, I realize I sprained my ankle and can feel it swelling up. It hurts to jog, its impossible to run, and walking is bearable but too slow. I wanted to make a good time, which seemed very possible in the beginning, but now, I just wanted to finish. My girlfriend stuck by me as she heard me complain about my ankle and being frustrated that I could keep running, but it hurt too much. She helped me push in that last mile.
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My medal for finishing the half-marathon under 3 hours and 30 minutes.
I finally cross the finish line and head immediately to the medical tent to lay down and relax. We went back to the hotel and got all my things to head home. As soon as I get home I ice my ankle, knee, and take a well deserved nap in my bed.
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Icing my ankle first while watching Dota2
Being a geek who loves watching eSports, fascinated by space, and could probably name more professional gamers than NFL athletes, the though of running a half marathon terrified me. Now that it's all said and done, my self confidence is much stronger and I'm so glad I did it.
This blog was just made to show that you can do anything really put your mind to. No matter what it is, how hard it might be, you just need to keep pushing through and you can get it done.
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