Chosen Half Marathon Gruene, TX

I married a runner.  I have never been a runner or really had a desire to be one.  I ran some with Matt when we got engaged.  I then took a break from it.  I ran off and on during our first years of marriage;  my first attempt with a goal being after Joshua was born.  I remember thinking if I could run around our apartment without stopping that would be a victory and then to the end of the road and so forth.  I ran 5 miles without stopping and knew I had made it!  We ran the Marine Mud Run that spring together.  Then, we moved to San Antonio that summer.  I continued to run but without purpose other than fitness.  I ran my first race, a 10k, in October of 2012.  I followed my training calendar and completed my goal.  I continued to run for the purpose of burning calories.

I decided this summer that with my inability to lose weight despite my efforts I needed another reason to run.  I have all the symptoms for poly-cystic ovarian syndrome including insulin resistance.  This makes weight loss pretty tough.  

I looked up possible races and saw that there was a half marathon in October.  It was not just any day in October but the day before my birthday and in our favorite area, Gruene!  On top of those two facts, all the proceeds were going to support families trying to adopt!  Stars were aligned and purpose found.  It was time to run!

I followed my training guide without missing A. Single. Day.  I also incorporated pilates/yoga to keep toning and to try something new.  I have always been more of a bootcamp/weights type girl.

I set a goal.  I trained for it.  I did it.  

Side note- I lost 10 pounds once I got to the 40+ miles a week and 45 min+yoga a day with of course clean eating.  Grateful for the weight loss but seriously....

Matt joined me on Saturday runs once Rachel moved in with us in September.  These became really special times.  I loved showing my man exactly what I was made of and impressing him each week.  We also planned out our future for the next 10 years.  You can do a lot of talking when you run for 10 miles side by side.

We decided to do the race solo so we could just each focus on our own run.  Do our personal best!

The race for me was incredible.  I found myself semi-alone on the course several times and although I was listening to music I found myself tuning out the music and reflecting/praying instead.  My prayers were prayers of gratitude.

  

Gratitude for a body that can run.  

Gratitude for being spared injury/sickness so that I could train continuously.  

Gratitude for the mental strength I needed to train and to continue up and down those continual hills to finish the race.  

Gratitude for the beautiful course that ran along a river and really showed off the beauty of the hill country.  

Gratitude that we could spend money for a good cause.  

Gratitude that my awesome husband was somewhere ahead of me on the course because he is seriously a rock star!

Pics of the race area

Post run, post shower, and sporting our shirts from the race.

Stats

Matt completed the race in 1 hour and 33 minutes. He was 5th out of his gender/age bracket and 16th overall (1010 racers).  7:07 pace

I completed the race in 1 hour and 47 minutes.  I was also 5th out of my gender/age bracket out of 145.  I was 15th out of 706 women and I was 64th overall.  8:10 pace

I was proud of us both and will definitely do another half marathon.