Earlier this month, I ran my first half-marathon.
This was my first ever race, in any distance. Going into the event, I had no idea what to expect. It turned out to be an incredible experience!
The Pivot
If you’ve read this post, you’ll know that I originally intended to run the full marathon. Clearly, that didn’t happen.
During the winter, my training was inconsistent. Work got busy. We were set to launch a brand new product at our startup and I was leading multiple projects. There was no balance.
Ofcourse, the weather didn’t help either, especially here in Toronto. While I did have access to a treadmill, running indoors just wasn’t motivating nor was it fun.
About five weeks before race day, I came to terms with the fact that I just wasn’t going to meet my goal. I was frustrated and disappointed in myself. Around the same time, a friend of mine who was training for the half-marathon, suggested that I sign up for it instead. I figured why not?
So, I pivoted. I managed to get a few training runs in and went for it. And I’m really glad I did.
Showing up for a race, even if it wasn’t the original one I intended to run, was much better than sitting it out. Plus, it ended up being such a valuable learning experience for two main reasons:
- First, I now have a good baseline of what to expect from these types of events.
- Second, and more importantly, it was a reminder that my health needs to remain a priority and that I should always put in the effort to maintain it.
So What’s Next?
I still plan to run a full marathon before the end of the year. There’s one happening in October, and my goal is to finish under 3:50!