Austin Half Marathon Shadow (In Seoul, S. Korea)
I finished my first half marathon after having a baby yesterday. The last one I did was March 2014, so almost exactly 2 years ago, right before I got pregnant.
I had some trouble in the couple long runs in the weeks before. I had some over-tightness that led to some muscle strain in my glutes and back. The longest run that I did for my training was 9 miles. I took the long run off the week before to give myself time to heal, took it pretty easy the week before, and then ran 13 miles.
After 7 miles in, I had to slow way down due to the pain. I was frustrated because I felt like I could have gone faster cardio-wise, but when muscles are just tightening up..
But I was able to finish (2:10, which isn't even my worst time), get my medal, and walk most of the way home (I was walking so slow that James carried me on his back for part of the way) and I had my favorite new fan cheering me on the whole way.
Jensen got excited and waved at me every time I passed. My husband told me he continued to wave at me after I passed him. Poor little guy probably kept wondering why I was running away from him.
The cherry blossoms were everywhere and they were beautiful. The weather was perfect (slightly cool and dreary, but perfect for running). It was my first half marathon in Korea and outside of the States for that matter.
My awesome husband ran around and was everywhere on the course with Jensen, taking pictures.
So yeah. It wasn't my fastest race, but I think it will stick out as one of my favorite half marathons. You can't help but smile (even through pain) when you have such a cute little cheerleader.
Go MOM!!! |
Going to continue to work on strengthening and stretching. For now, I'm happy with my finish and my heart is full. God is good.
Love to see that despite having a child you can still manage to do your hobbies. Keep it up even on different country, that's great!
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