Running for a cause

The St. Jude Half Marathon was two weeks ago.  I ran this as my first half marathon back in 2004, but much has changed (mainly three kids and a couple of years in the thirties) since that race.  I must not have enjoyed the race too much the first time since I stopped running for about seven years after it.  This year was different--I truly enjoyed the half and vowed to run it again because it benefits such a worthy cause. 

Before the half in Nashville, Stephanie and I trained religiously.  We stuck to our schedule, drank plenty of water, and carb-loaded before the race.  After the half, we were both injured and not in the mood to train consistently.  We still ran, but not with the same dedication.  I still ran three mornings a week at 5 am, but we did not always make our long runs.  In short, we weren't fully prepared for this race. 

The weather on race day was ridiculously warm for December--I think it was in the 60s by the time we finished running.  I actually prefer warmer weather for running, so that was a benefit for me.  The race course was so much flatter than Nashville, and there were fans and entertainment literally all along the course.  This was just a much better race to run.  The biggest inspiration was when we hit the fifth mile and ran through the campus of St. Jude.  Seeing all the precious patients clapping and cheering for me broke my heart--I felt so guilty that these cancer patients were thanking me and all I was doing was running--they were truly the ones fighting a battle.  Some of the signs they held and looks they gave me were overwhelming;  I cried, along with every other runner with a soul. 

I finished the race in 2 hours, 19 minutes.  This was six minutes (and millions of aches) less than the Nashville half.  I was pleased with my time.  I'm so flipping competitive that I really wanted to beat my time from 2004 of 2:17, but I have to remind myself my body has gone through pregnancy and childbirth three times since then.  I would love to run a half marathon in two hours, but I really love being able to run at all and being mother to three perfectly healthy children.  This race is a blessing and I was honored to run it.