Heather Runs a Marathon

 

I don't know exactly what possessed me to run a marathon. I think it began with some dumb self-help book that told me to not be afraid to dream big or something, haha. Anyway, I pushed away my fear and doubt and signed up to run the Sand Hollow marathon (since I'm not gettin' any younger). I started training probably in October. 

It ended up seriously being one of the most difficult things I've ever done. And it wasn't even the race that was the hardest, it was those long training runs. Finding the time to fit in sooo many stinkin' hours of running and then dealing with the repercussions of so much mileage was agonizing. My body was like, "What in the actual HECK are you doing to me?!" I dealt with pulled muscles, sore knees, and fatigued legs. Barry was constantly helping me stretch and massaging my dying legs. I used to think walking was taboo, but I ended up walking A LOT just to get the miles done. After Barry's Moab race, I ran one 17-miler mostly in the dark, getting lost through several cities and finally falling at the end. Another time I got home and just dropped the floor crying. I wasn't sure if I would be able to finish the race at all. But I decided I'd put all that work in and I would try. So I taped myself up, took copious amounts of ibuprofen, and went for it. 

The actual race ended up being pretty fun. I was definitely a lot slower than I originally imagined. I thought at that point I would be stronger, but I mostly felt beaten down into a pit of running humility. The race was a there-and-back around the reservoir and it was definitely beautiful scenery. And boy, were there some big hills I wasn't expecting. But the cool part was that going back up a giant hill during the second half, I began passing people. And then I passed some more people and some more. I managed to pick up my pace around mile twenty and felt like I was actually running how I wanted to. The last two miles were painfully hard, though, but having my kids there at the finish line to see their mom conquer this impossible goal made it all worth it.

These pictures were taken over four months or so. I tried to find the beauty in all of the different places I ran to.

Trip to Hurricane

My race was near Hurricane (pronounced hurr-i-ken for some illogical reason) and even though I was stressing before and dying after my marathon, we managed to squeeze in some fun at our AirBnB, near the reservoir and in the dunes, and with Grandma and Grandpa Decker. We took our time coming home the next day and played at a fun park near Beaver.