10 Miles!

You’ve picked your first half marathon.

You’ve been dutifully putting in the miles and following the training plan. It’s been a little challenging, but you’ve been doing it and managing thus far.

You look at the schedule for this week. Ugh! You should have known. Saturday’s long run was 9 miles. Of course, the next long run is going to be 10 miles! That’s double digits! Do you see? Two numbers making up one number. You know it’s just a number, but it’s a daunting one.

That 1 and 0 are playing in your head all week. Sometimes you can convince yourself that it’s only one mile longer than Saturday’s run. Other times, you know how long that 9 miles took and remember how it felt during those dark, boring parts. But that was only 9 miles. You felt great afterwards, so your mind is back to “I can do this!”. Then you remember that long uphill at mile 4 and you are back to questioning your ability to make it 10 miles.

Saturday’s here. You are excited and scared at the same time. You’ve got your water and fuel ready. Next step…put on the shoes. You’ve heard lacing up the shoes is the hardest part and are sure hoping your body agrees once you hit the later miles in this run.

You step outside, sync up your GPS, and head off. Because you are nervous excited, you take off a little too fast but notice within the first mile. You are worried you messed up the whole run and that this will prevent you from finishing the 10 miles. You back off your pace and work to get your heart rate back down to your easy MAF (maximum aerobic function) heart rate. By mile 2 you are back down to where you want to be and are in the zone.

You cruise along for the few miles constantly telling yourself not to worry about the distance and just run. You are trying to take in all the sights and solve all the worlds problems (like you do on a long run); anything to keep your mind off of the daunting 10 mile mark you are striving towards.

At about mile 7, you’re thinking this isn’t so bad. “I only have about a 5k left. I’ve done those before and even if I have to slow down to walk, I can do this. I don’t want to walk, but I can if I want to and still complete the 10 miles. ” At the same time you’re thinking “Why am I out here?! I still have another 5k left! I’ve been out here forever. I’m bored, my right calf is being weird. Why would anyone want to run a half marathon EVER?! This is the dumbest thing I’ve ever done.”

Suddenly mile 8 is here. “Huh, only one more mile until I reach last week’s run mileage. Then the next step will be further than I’ve ever run before. I’m not sure what I think about that. My right calf still feels a little off but not bad. It’s just a tiny, occasional twinge and seems stable. I might be able to do this.”

!!!Mile 9!!! “Oh man, only 1 mile left. It’s going to take forever!” You know it’s only 1/10 of this run and will likely take just as long as each of the previous 9, but somehow time has slowed down and it’s taking much longer. You’ve decided not to look at your watch because it will just be demoralizing. “Why am I out here again?” You’re grateful that you are still a mile from home so that you are forced to finish up the last mile, and at this point, you might as well finish it as quickly as your mind and legs will allow you because slowing down will just prolong the agony.

Mile 9.5. Still seems like a long ways away, but hey, you might actually do this. You think, “If you can hit 10 miles, the half marathon goal is still in play.” You get a bit of bounce and energy back in your step. You’re feeling motivated to reach that double digit number.

Mile 10! The watch beeps. You did it! 10 miles in the books. You are elated and kind of in shock at the same time. It doesn’t seem real. You never thought you’d be able to run this far in your life. You never thought of yourself as a runner even when completing the local 5k runs. Turns out the amazing coaching, gradual ramp up and low heart rate training has made it possible!