Category Archives: Marathon

Tonight, I Fly To Boston…

Posted by hellyontherun in Marathon, Race, Running, Travel and tagged with , , , , ,

Tonight, I fly to Boston…still in disbelief that I will run the 123rd Boston Marathon.

Tonight, I fly to Boston…knowing it was not too long ago qualifying was a far-fetched dream.

Tonight, I fly to Boston…and will be picked up by one of my bestest friends. While running brought us together, our friendship has grown through our belief that God brought us together for a purpose much bigger than running.

Tonight I fly to Boston…inspired. My BQ bestie, Ashley, suffered an injury while training and even though she couldn’t run in preparation for the big race, did everything else she could to be able to toe the start line. Her positive attitude is so contagious, and I’m so grateful for friends who teach me to look for the good in all situations.

Tonight, I fly to Boston…with my husband. It was our ultimate goal to qualify for the Boston Marathon together. An incredible feat that we had no idea how/if we’d accomplish it. It’s no coincidence that training to qualify and training for Boston helped our relationship grow so much this past year. The encouragement and support we’ve shared has brought us so much closer together, and together, we fly to Boston.

Tonight, I fly to Boston…the most unprepared I’ve ever been for a race. And even though I go knowing that the 123rd Boston Marathon won’t be my best marathon, tonight I fly to Boston knowing it was my best marathon that got me there. It was that marathon which has me going to Boston knowing I can do hard things.

Tonight, I fly to Boston.

 

Weeks 12-15: #itsgoingdownatphx

Posted by hellyontherun in Bloggers, Marathon, Marathon Training, Running and tagged with , , , , , , ,

Welp, looks like I’ve gotten a little behind on these recaps, lol!! To catch you up, training has been going really well. Which of course, makes me nervous.

I’ve had some pretty amazing workouts at paces I never thought I could do. So far, I’ve completed an 18 miler, a 20 miler, and an 18 miler, with my last 20 coming up this weekend. The last two long runs were super tough leaving me wondering if I can really do this thing, but let me tell you something, besides running these past few weeks, I’ve been working on my mental game LIKE WHOA.

I’ll do a full recap on the reading I’ve done (and podcasts I’ve listened to <—finally catching up with the times!) after the race, but I do want to say that immersing myself with positivity has been such a help for me this training cycle.

I wouldn’t be able to have hit these paces without believing I could.

Of course I get nervous, will I have had a great training cycle but an abysmal race? But as soon as those thoughts start creeping in, I shut them out.

And if for whatever reason, things go to shit and I don’t BQ, I’m guaranteed a fun time because… my friends are getting married at mile 26!!!!

follow the fun at @rundrunklove

Love them!

the bride-to-be and meeee!

Yessss!!! How awesome is that? So I “met” Scott through his (now defunct) blog and then met him in real life when we both ran Chicago Marathon 2015. That’s when I met Marsha, the girl he’ll be marrying. We hit it off and now we’re the best of friends ❤ They came out last year for Phoenix Marathon when Marsha was trying to BQ (she did) and then came out again to baptize my son.

I ❤ this pic.

Hoping to ring that bad boy again this year!

Regardless of the outcome of the race, I’m so glad these two will be there. I know that they’ll be my tequila drinking buddies if I need to drown my sorrows or celebrate the good times 😀

CAN’T WAIT!!!

–Have you seen a mid-marathon wedding?

 

Some St. George Extra and What I’m Doing Now

Posted by hellyontherun in Marathon, Race, Running and tagged with , , , , ,

I mentioned in a previous post about St. George how I was excited about the race because of friends running it.

My friend Jenna, who also used the same coach as me, was running to Boston Qualify, and I had no doubts she would do it. Guess what? SHE KILLED IT. She needed a 3:35 like me and ended up with a 3 FREAKING 20!!! Yeah, demolished her goal!!!

My other friend Kimi was running her third marathon in 6 months (crazy girl) and also pulled out a BQ. We’re not sure if it’ll be enough cushion but that girl is serious amazeballs.

Ashley, my training buddy/partner-in-BQ-crime, came away with a 4 minute PR at 3:43!!! I *know* she’s got a BQ in her and with the right course (maybe CIM in December?) she’ll get her Boston ticket.

In my race recap, I recounted how we’d driven the course and seen that while it was net downhill, it was a lot of rolling up and down hill. I knew I was not prepared for that (or prepared to BQ or PR), but even Ashley who had done some hill training wasn’t feeling confident after the preview.

St. George Marathon is an absolutely beautiful course. The views the entire way are breathtaking. The volunteers and overall organization of the race are seriously topnotch. Like, for real. At each station, there were people who who would rub cream on your legs to help with cramping, they were people who had vaseline if you were chafing, there were people there to help you with mostly anything. I had never seen anything like it!

But as a Boston Qualifying course, I’m not so sure I’d recommend it. If you like hills, have hills around you to train, then this is def a good course to shoot for that goal. If you’re in the flatlands, it might be tough.

I’d have to stick with my Phoenix Marathon course. It’s also net downhill (that’s really more flat than downhill after the initial descent) and while boring and lacking in views (after the initial descent), I honestly think it’s a good PR course. (and of course, shameless plug: Use Helly10 for $10 off the half or full!)

Downhill but way less so than St. George.

So that’s where I’ll make my next attempt. I’ll have home court advantage, so I have that going for me. And if I’m honest, I need all the help I can get.

Right now I’m laying low, easing myself back into running after a much needed rest. I’m skipping CIM in December and instead getting a full cycle for Phoenix. Training for Phoenix officially begins the 24th, and I’ll be going in ready to give it all I have. I’d love to use my coach again, but with budgeting for the holidays, I’ll be re-using some of her workouts in addition to Hanson’s to go at it solo. I’m excited, and I feel really good about where I’m at right now with running. Even though I had a rough go at it with St. George, coming away with a PR match has given me a newfound confidence with this next attempt.

Let’s do this, blogging fam!! ❤

–What is your next running/fitness goal?

 

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