I had a long winter--some injuries and other things got in the way of training and racing. And, general dislike for training kept me from getting up and getting things done in terms of racing. As a result, I was less than prepared for the Chicago Rock 'n' Roll 1/2 Marathon.
The day prior to the race I was in Minneapolis where I ran/walked the Bacon Chase 5k with friends (it was a fun race--I recommend it!). Then, I hopped a plane and arrived in Chicago. After surviving the chaos that is a Rock 'n' Roll race expo, I had my packet and set out for a lovely evening hanging out with a friend in Chicago. All the while, I had this dread hanging over my head--I knew this race was going to be painful.
If I am being 100% honest, the last time I really ran was back in November for the Women's 1/2 Marathon. I had done some short distances since then, but nothing consistent or really much more than 3-5 miles at a time. Once the hot weather hit in Phoenix, I did ZERO running (or biking for that matter). I decided that I would use a walk-run interval to survive the Chicago race and held to it for the first half...then my walk intervals got longer...then my run intervals got shorter. Finally, for miles 11 & 12, I think (I know) I walked more than I ran.
I finished and could feel my lack of training in just about every part of my body. I vowed to start training for my October/November half marathons (4 half marathons in 6 weeks). Here it is, August, and the training has not really started...yet. So, here I am back on the blog and committing to getting trained for those races!!
If you're curious about how I handled the incredible muscle soreness following the race, check out my other blog (Oil Have What She's Having) where I talked about that. oilhabit.com/2014/07/sore-muscles-aroma-siez/
Happy racing (and training!!) everyone!
