My First 20 Miler!!

This past weekend I ran my first 20 mile run!  It was inspiring, and now I have total confidence that I can run a marathon.

My longest run prior to this was 14 miles.  In order to make my 20-miler a little more fun and a little less daunting, I made a game out of it.  I broke it up into four rounds of five miles.  Round 1 included miles 1-5, Round 2 included miles 6-10, Round 3 included miles 11-15, and Round 4 included miles 16-20.

The first 9 miles flew by.  I was averaging a 13:00 min/mile and feeling great!  Then around mile 10, my ankle/foot injury started to flare up and my knee started to ache.  At mile 12, I slowed to a running shuffle to help alleviate the pressure I put on my right leg.  Then I hit mile 16 and thought, “this is the home stretch!”  I had really slowed down by this time.  Then at mile 17 I got a call from my Dad and he was so stoked for me!  He cheered me on gave me words of encouragement and support.  He’s the best!  That gave me a total boost and despite my pain becoming more prominent, I pushed through.  Finally I was on my last mile.  By this time I was running really slow, averaging a 15:20 mile (When my right foot hit the ground, a jolt of pain shot up from my foot/ankle to my knee, so I had to shuffle.  Like I said, I was doing a running shuffle; but I never walked!).

I finished with a total time of 5 hours and 29 seconds (5:00:29).  I felt amazing!  My energy was up, my spirits were high, and finishing those 20 miles gave me the reassurance that I can and will finish the LA marathon.  A major part of finishing with ample energy was my nutrition plan.  My coach was awesome and provided on-course support.  I carried my gels with me in my iFitness belt, and my coach was there in his SUV to provide Accelerade and water when we needed it.  During my 20 miler, I took a total of 4 gels and drank some sips of Accelerade about 4 times.  For me, miles 12-17 were probably the most challenging.  During those miles is when my injuries really flared up, and it was also the period where I was achieving a new “longest run”.  At the end I was sore…my right foot/ankle hurt to walk, and my right knee hurt to bend…but I knew I had an ice bath waiting for me at home, and nothing could taint my spirits and happiness of this accomplishment.  Now I know what it’s like to be out there running for that long, and I’m ready for LA on March 17^th.

When I got home, my hubby had the ice in the bath ready for me.  I was so excited!  Ice baths are painfully cold when you first get in them, but I swear by them.  They help reduce inflammation and every time I've taken one my soreness the next day was minimal.  So I shivered my way in, and it was great.  On top of prepping my ice bath for me, my hubby surprised me with a massage appointment that afternoon!  He reserved me a deep tissue at our favorite place and I nearly hopped out of my ice bath with excitement.  He is the best, most supportive and loving husband in the world!  Thank you my love!  Let me tell you, that massage was the greatest one I've ever had.  She worked on my legs/glutes, and between the ice bath and massage, I was barely sore on Sunday!

Today marks 20 days until the LA Marathon, my very first marathon, and my Marathon for Mom.  I am running for the AA&MDS International Foundation, the foundation for the disease that my Mommy passed away from last March.  She was my hero, my inspiration, and my best friend.  I am running this in her memory to raise awareness and funds for MDS.  If you would like to contribute, please click the link here.  Thank you so much with all my heart.