One week ago I had my first half marathon and the experience was wow…. something to write about now.
On the road, I’ve experienced so many feelings: pain, frustration, disappointment and joy, all combined.
Last year I’ve ran 10 km, so going on a 21 km road run was the challenge of the year. Without comparing with the 10 km run, the half marathon is a serious thing, at least for me, and here are some reasons why:
- You need some training, a good physical condition and what’s the most important: a strong mind. When you’re in pain, you can’t breathe or even feel that you can’t move your legs, your mind is the only one that helps you out. You need to encourage yourself in so many ways that you would never thought about.
- You need entertainment. Yes, running as crazy for more than 2 hours is boring, so you need some distractions on the road. There are so many people encouraging you, singing, clapping and this is more than helpful. But isn’t enough. At a certain point, you don’t even hear anyone as you are so tired that you can’t concentrate to anything. So get yourself some music, an audiobook or even set up some games in your mind: counting, singing, anything you come up with at the moment.
- You have all the chances to finish last. So what? As long as you listen to your body and you feel that you can reach to the finish line, the time is just a number. You’re not there to compete, but to do something meaningful for yourself. (And no, I wasn’t the last one J)
- What you eat is super important, but more than this, is to stay hydrated all the time. There are some stops where you can drink water and eat fruits, but this may not be enough. After the run, I almost fainted as my body was so weak and dehydrated. You need plenty of fluids and healthy food to recover.
- If it’s the first experience, it will mean a lot to you as you are able to push your limits. For me, it was more than a personal ambitious.
I’ve ran 21 km and I had all the feelings: I was disappointed as I didn’t trust myself from the beginning to be able to reach the finish line. I was frustrated when I was feeling so tired, almost ready to give up. But more than this, I was frustrated for putting myself into something so serious, overwhelming for my body.
I was totally in pain. I had a severe muscle pain for a week and I felt dizzy for about 2 days.
But in the end, I forgot everything and I felt the biggest satisfaction and blessing for doing it. I even started to cry after I passed the finish line. Partially, I was happy for reaching my goal, but partially for stopping to rest as I couldn’t take the muscles pain anymore.
I’m definitely not the first person doing it and I may be too sensitive about the experience, but let me ask you…how would you feel if you could run 21 km now?
Thanks for reading 🙂
