My First Marathon - Publix A1A Marathon

This course is absolutely beautiful and since it wasn't part of the Storm Series I decided it would be my first half.  I have been wanting to do a full marathon for a few years & I spent just under a year training for it. I am so pleased and proud to say that I finally completed my 1st FULL MARATHON. 26.2 miles in 4:39:19! I know it's not an amazing time, but damn it I finished it!!! 

It was a cold early morning when the race started, a fun 58, for you none South Floridians, you think that is practically balmy for February, but for us locals...that is COLD! From that in the next 4 1/2 hours it went up to 75+, with the sun and salt and beach air. 

To be honest, I was really nervous, but feeling really good about it. I was ready to do it. While waiting in the coral, I meet a nice block from NYC that had come down to visit him mum and decided to sign up. His pace was around mine, so I figured my goal would be to keep up with him. LOL. Prob should have informed him of that, but I didn't...until many many miles later.

I have run my fair share of half marathons and I went into the Full not given the mental and physical challenge of the Full Marathon the respect that it truly deserves. Well let me just say when I hit mile 20....from there till the finish line, it was the LONGEST 6 miles of my life! It was no longer mind over matter and the idea that it is all in your head, no it has become your body! Ever step, ever movement, ever slight incline (even a bloody speed bump) I felt. It was completely agonizing, the desire to stop...to walk...questioning why I even wanted to complete one, all plagued me with every next foot fall. 

They say you hit a wall when you run the Full Marathon, I didn't really know what they meant when they said "hit your wall". I train, I run, I have always been able to push though, I honestly thought this was the same kinda thing, I would just push through, no big. But nope...I know completely understand what they mean when they said "hit your wall"! Mine was at mile 22. My feet and ankles were screaming at me. My shoulders and arms ached. My lower back pulsed. I felt light headed, dehydrated and just wanted to stop. My feet were so swollen I could feel my laces digging into the top of my foot, I was just hoping and praying for them to go numb. Every person that I passed that yelled, "you are almost there, you can do it" and I know they were just trying to encourage me, but I wanted to kill them and all I could think was, "There are 6 million ways to die mother f'er chose one and shut up you ass hole!" There was no thumbs up 

The last 1.5 miles the adrenaline kicked it. I put my head down and just kept telling my self "mile & half to go, mile & half don't stop now, mile to go keep moving, finish strong, mile to go, mile to go, mile to go, half mile, almost there, just go, move, move" I wanted to die! Lol but I stayed strong & finished even stronger. And when I though I had nothing left to give, I somehow managed to even dig deep down inside to find the desire and energy to sprint the last half mile. When I crossed that finish line I didn't know if I should cry or laugh I was so happy! 

Let's be honest my ankles & feet are FUBAR but damn am I proud!! :-) 

And I gadda day I have some  amazing friends who came out to support me &/or sent me encouraging text while I struggled the last few miles!!!! Since I have no family here, it's nice to have good friends to support you in your accomplishments! 

I want home, relaxed the rest of the day on the couch, mostly because it hurt to move. Every muscle in my body had pushed itself & needed to rest. I had to stop half way up my stairs to rest when I went up to shower. And although I lay hungry in bed, the thought of going back down the stairs to get food just sounded painfully crazy...so I just went to sleep instead. 

The next day, I woke up & my body cursed me when I got up. I shoulda taken a sick day.  It seriously took me 10 min to go pee. I after almost ripping the doorknob of the bathroom stall while I tried to lower myself to the toilet...and using it to pull myself back up (next time handicap stall for sure) I looked down and realized my pants where around my ankles I cried a little when I realized I would have to bend down to get them. LOL :) 

I'm hoping for better tomorrow cuz tonight, I'm going to rest. Hot/cold, hot tub, Biofreeze & hot pad. :-) Just a fun fact....only about .05% of the US Population has actually completed a Full Marathon. So for those of you that have, you should be proud, I know I am!

 So will I be doing another full marathon??....ask me in a week :-)

10K Trail Run

It is important to run on different terrains besides the road all the time, and living in South Florida where it is just flat is makes it pretty hard. So about 4-5 times a year I try to do a trail run, and of course after the fiasco with the Spartan Race this year I want to do some training to help me prepare for next year.

So I talked a few of my friends into sign up to do the Amelia Bike Trails. Me and one of my friends did the 10K and my other friend did the 5K. 

Let me just say that June-Aug in South Florida is BRUTAL it is so humid and hot all summer long that there is a reason people don't spend the summers down here. We got up at 6 am to head down and it was already hot outside. I didn't even have to start running, just walk outside, to start sweating! So I knew that the trails where going to be hard.

I decided to do the 10K instead of the 5K for a few reasons. 
A) I want to increase my distance
B) I do 5Ks all the time and wanted a challenge
C) I have 5 half marathons coming up over the fall and winter and I am going to need it
D) Help me prepare to do even better in the Spartan Race next year

The first half (5K) was pretty easy. I actually nailed it but about half way through the last 2.7 miles was horrible. I felt my body just telling me now. Every time I had to climb a hill or go around, it was horrible and my little ankles were starting to ache. Mentally I also felt myself give up, I started thinking about things that I shouldn't have and felt myself not only giving up on running, winning, pushing myself but everything. I let myself think about something enough to upset me and my eyes even started to water up, I just wanted to curl up, give up and cry. My heartache definitely affected me.

But its not like you can just stop in the middle of a race and curl up and die from heartache, altough if I could have I would have, so I kept going. I was almost walking at the end as I sobbed...but I managed to finish and pull myself together. I completed the 10K (which was actually 6.77 miles) and managed to somehow come in 2nd! Surprise.

So all 3 of us managed to place that day, despite my emotional breakdown.

 We took: 1st in the Male 10K, 2nd in the Female 10K and 2nd in the Female 5K!!! 

I have had that happen to me once before, September 2012. I did a 5K in almost 40 minutes becasue I was crying so hard thanks to men. It makes me so mad that any man can have that much control over me.  Admittedly last time it was the DAY of the...I am breaking up with you because I want to sleep with someone else. This time it was over a month later after the...here are pictures of me kissing another girl for you and all our friends to see posted on Facebook. I should be over it by now...but I am not (obviously) and I don't think I will be for a while.

Anyway. I think I want to do another one of the trail runs, and I want to do the 10K again. I want to beat my time and maybe not have an emotional breakdown this time around.

This is also Race #16 of 2013 - 8 more to go until I get to my goal!

Next...well. Next Race unless I sign up for something in July or Aug is the King of the Hill 5K Sept 1st!

Cario BURNS Calories!

I came across this on Tumbler and I loved it so I figured I would share it.

July ABS-TASTIC Workout!

My never ending work towards that perfect 6 pack!

What's Your Therapy

Like many people out there, I stress  everyday. My co-workers, my job, my bills, hell everything! I sometimes feel like the walls are closing in around me & I'm just gasping...trying to keep from drowning as the little things in life continue to pile up, slowly suffocating me. 

To escape and find a single moment of peace, some people drink, some people smoke, some people take drugs...me, my escape is exercise. I think without it I'd go crazy! 

I wake up every morning & the first thing that passes through my mind is, "What workout do I have tonight?" "How far can I run this evening?" "What trail am I going to use?"

Before I started working out on a regular bases, I was a very angry person...now I know I can take out my frustration, anger, aggression & even depression on "the bag" :-)

I tell myself, stay calm Chloe, in just 3 hours you can beat the crap out of the heavy bag. 

I guess we all have our methods of dealing with life, but finding therapy in the gym, the road or on the bag...exercise has always been my best outlet.