Success and Struggle

random

runnings
Last weekend I had a successful half marathon and got back under 2 hours. I hadn’t seen that in a half at all last year. I ran the Earth Day Half Marathon in 1:56:00. It felt good and I wasn’t dying at the end. Of course I had that thought of maybe being able to have done it faster, but was happy to finish feeling good. Today was a bit of a different story. RF is still recovering from pneumonia, so we couldn’t do our 18 miler together. I did ended up running with two other friends though. I tackled the hilly portion of the marathon route first with one friend and then finished off the last 9 miles with another friend. I made it through, but think I came as close to experiencing bonking as I ever have. I’ve heard people talk about bonking during a marathon, but was never quite sure what the experience would be. The last few miles today were a struggle and I started to feel incredibly light headed. With only a mile left, I had to stop for some energy chews and a rest or I’m pretty sure I couldn’t have put a foot in front of the other for much longer. This was a run where I wonder how I’m going to finish 26.2 miles. I do think though, in my training for the other two marathons, the 18-miler was the hardest run.