Provo City Half Marathon - May 1, 2010

My training for the half marathon was difficult. It seemed every race I had leading up to the big day had its own challenges; the biggest of all was the IT Band Syndrome I had in both of my knees. 

The last few weeks of training were a huge struggle. Matthew and I would head out on Saturday morning with our water belt, gum, music, GU Chomps and our trusty Garmin GPS watches; and we would head up Provo Canyon. I felt great for the first few miles, even making it all the way to Vivian Park on one training run, only to be discouraged and disappointed on the way back. My pain would get too severe, so I'd have to stop at one of the parks and Matthew would run ahead to get the car and pick me up. I was devastated; I felt like I wouldn't be able to accomplish this one goal I had set for myself.

Matthew talked to me about possibly running the half marathon relay, he would take the first leg and then I could take the second and cross the finish line. He also talked about the possibility of skipping the race altogether and not doing it. Taking time off, resting my knees, recuperating, and then trying it all again in a few months. I wouldn't listen; I got upset anytime he brought it up. I was determined to do it, but in the back of my mind I had doubts.


I wanted May 1, 2010 to be the day that I accomplished this goal. My parents would be there, my little sisters, Matthew's family and that was more important to me than any pain I felt.


The farthest I had gone in training was 10 miles, which hurt. I didn't think I could make it another 3.1 miles after that race. Two weeks before the half marathon I was planning to run 12 miles, it was on the schedule, but I only made it 8.5 miles. I was determined to run 10 miles the next Saturday, but I only made it 5.


I broke down, I didn't know what to do. Should I give up? Should I rest? Should I risk getting injured just to reach my personal goal? I decided to go for it. I knew if I was going to do it; I needed to give it everything I had. So, I went to our family doctor the Monday before the race. He gave me a cortisone shot in each knee, which was really painful, and told me to rest until Saturday. He also suggested I buy some straps to put above my knees while running to take some of the pressure off, so I did.

The week went by fast and before I knew it, we were celebrating Matthew and all of his accomplishments and then we headed to pick up our packets. We went to bed early and I prayed for good weather and a strong body. I woke up early, ate some breakfast, and we headed to the starting line. It was a beautiful morning.

Provo Tabernacle (Start and Finish Line)

But, it was a little chilly,

And, I was really nervous,

So, I turned on my tunes,

and I stretched a LOT. Before I knew it, we were saying goodbye,

and we were OFF!!!! We stayed toward the back of the pack and I got in my groove. And about 5 minutes into our race, it started sprinkling...and then it started drizzling....and then it even snowed, but it didn't stop me, I kept going.

The weather stayed at a constant drizzle and we were both grateful we decided to run with our gloves on, they literally saved us! I stopped at every aid station. I stretched a little, drank some water, ate my GU Chomps and tightened my IT Band straps as I needed to. My pace was a little slower than I would have liked, but I felt good and that's all that mattered to me. My music was keeping me motivated and before I knew it, we had passed the half way point, which was such a relief. Each mile marker we passed I felt good, and when I passed mile marker 7 as "Another One Bites The Dust" came on, I started laughing and then my eyes filled up with tears, I was actually running my first half marathon!!!!

At mile 10, Matthew looked over at me and he said, "This is virgin mileage, babe! Every step from here on out is farther than you've ever gone before".-And I still felt good. :D

Around mile 12, Miley Cyrus started singing "The Climb" to me. MOST.AMAZING.SONG.EVER!!! I started crying and laughing all at the same time. I think it was in that moment that I finally realized that I was going to make it. I was going to finish the half marathon.

The last mile was definitely the hardest. I felt like I was running in slow motion and my body felt like it was shutting down, but I kept going. And when we rounded the corner for the home stretch, my step-dad was standing there in the rain and pretty soon I started seeing all of our other family and friends that came to support me, and it was emotional. 

We were almost there, and every step was a little more difficult than the last.

And then Matthew started celebrating before we even got to the finish line...

And then I grabbed his hand, and we finished together, just like we always do!

We were soaked and we were tired and it only took 3 minutes before we started to freeze, so we didn't stay long, but it was so worth it.

I'm so happy that I had friends and family there to greet me at the finish line. It was emotional giving them hugs and sharing this experience with them, definitely something I will not ever forget. 

And I couldn't have done it without my best friend. He is the one that keeps pushing me and helping me reach all of my goals! And maybe someday, we'll even run our first full marathon, and finish together! :D

This has been the soundtrack of my life/training over the past several months: 

I can almost see it
That dream I am dreaming
But there's a voice inside my head saying
"You'll never reach it"

Every step I'm taking
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaking

But I gotta keep trying
Gotta keep my head held high

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be a uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb

Salt Lake 10 Miler

We drove up to Bountiful Friday afternoon to spend the weekend with my in-laws. The race started at 7:30 the next morning, so we took Grandma Catlin out to dinner and then headed to bed around 9:30pm after checking the weather. We realized we could be running in a blizzard with horrible winds, I prayed that it wouldn't be horrible and it could have been worse. We didn't sleep well at all and woke up around 4:30 am to get some oatmeal in before we left for the race. We drove to "This is the Place Monument" and waited for our friends to arrive to give us a lift to the starting line.

The run started at Little Dell Recreation area. The course went up and over Little Mountain down Emigration Canyon and finished at "This is the Place" monument. The map below shows the course:

Once we got to the start, we tried to stay warm and stayed in the car as long as possible. The video below Matthew took just after the gun went off:

The roads were wet, icy and snowy and the wind was brutal! The first 2.25 miles had a fairly steep incline before we hit the summit and started on the downhill. There were some parts of the incline with the wind blowing 30mph you just felt like you were running/jogging in place. It was awful, and I was only averaging a 12-13 minute mile for those first few miles. My IT Band started hurting soon after the start and I had to walk it out a few times. I started feeling pretty good once we headed downhill although I still felt some pain in my knees.

My pace was getting better and I finally felt like I was getting into the groove. At mile 8, I stopped for water. The stop was less than 60 seconds, but when I started running again the pain was excruciating. I was crying and whimpering. Matthew looked at me and asked if we need to stop and go get the medic, but I was determined to finish. It took another half mile to get into the groove again and mentally get past the pain, but I crossed the finish line hand in hand with Matthew with tears streaming down my face. It was an emotional run, frustrated I was feeling so much pain and wishing my body would have kept up with me, we finished slower than I would have liked, but we finished. Our time was: 1:41:00.06.

I went to the doctor this morning. I have Iliotibial Band Syndrome. The doctor gave me some stretches to do and I purchased a Foam Roller to help work out some of the inflammation. He said I should start seeing some improvement in the next week or so. I plan on doing some lighter training for the next couple of weeks. I am still looking forward to running the Provo City Half Marathon on May 1st and determined to get there no-matter-what!!!

Spectrum 10K

Last weekend Matthew and I drove down to Saint George with some friends for my 10K. We left Thursday afternoon and stayed until Saturday afternoon. The weather was beautiful and the resort we stayed at was amazing.

My friend, Jen, ran the race with me. It started up Snow Canyon State Park and finished in Ivins, UT. The run down the canyon was amazing. One of my favorite parts of the race was looking down the canyon and seeing the entire canyon filled with people wondering what goals they were reaching and why they were out running. I loved the race and I would do it again in a heart beat.

I was having problems with my IT Band and decided to change my form and run more from the middle of my foot to toe instead of heel to toe. I got some pretty sweet blisters because I wasn't used to the form and most of the race was downhill, but I still ran sub 10 minute miles and finished in 58:05.

We had such a great weekend with our friends eating far too much food and getting some much needed relaxation from everyday life! My Salt Lake 10 Miler is next weekend! Woot!

Frigid 5K in Provo, UT

Saturday, February 27th was my first of four races for the next two months. I ran the Frigid 5K in Provo. It was a really small race, only about 100 people ran it, and they didn't make a big deal about it, but it was good practice.

The course was a figure eight and it ended up being mostly on the Provo River Trail. The weather was perfect. I even go too hot in my winter running clothes.

And of course, it wouldn't be a race without thinking about my dad. My iPod was on shuffle and played "Standing Outside The Fire" by Garth Brooks.It's a great motivating song, especially the video. It's one of my daddy's favorites. It might be strange, but I feel him close to me when I run and I truly love it. He continues to inspire me everyday.

Training has been going really well. I'm running three times a week and doing cycling/spin classes at the gym twice a week along with strength training that is killing me!!! I love feeling sore and knowing that it's hopefully doing something. My longest distance is tomorrow: 7 Miles and in two weeks I have my 10K in Saint George. Bring it on! :D

My cute running friends: Jen, Anne, and Me First time through the finish line, half way there! The Finish!!! Wahoo!

Running with Angels

One of my goals this year was to run a 5K, something that I thought would be impossible. I started training in February and was only running a half a mile at the beginning, running 2-3 times a week. I used the 5K Novice Training Schedule by Hal Higdon. I hated running at first; I wondered if I'd ever really like it.

My wonderful husband who is an avid runner ran with me every step of the way. I think there were only 2 training days that he didn't go with me. On those days I almost backed out- I didn't think I could do it without him, but I told him he couldn't run the race with me. I was doing this for myself and I needed him to be my biggest fan. So he patiently listened to my complaints about running and how I'd never run without chapstick, gum, or my MP3 player.

About six weeks into my training I really started to enjoy my running. I was looking forward to it everyday and I realized that it was my mind that was holding me back. I kept telling myself that I couldn't do it, that I'd probably give up or end up walking the whole way, but I kept going and pushed myself every time I ran. I was now looking forward to the 5K and even talking about continuing on to a 10K and then work my way up to a half marathon by the beginning of next year. I was able to run the full 3.10 miles a few times in my training prior to the race and it felt amazing. It's hard to explain, but it became an emotional outlet for me.

My MP3 player decided to stop working on me so I got my very first ipod. The 8GB nano, it's beatiful and it works like a dream, so much more responsive than my Samsung MP3 player.

The morning of the race I felt great. I had been so busy with Girl's Camp that week I really didn't have time to get nervous. I had picked up my packet the night before and so we headed to the race site around 6:45am. The race was at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi. The course actually ran through the Thanksgiving Point Gardens. The weather was perfect. When we first arrived it still hadn't really hit me yet. I actually chuckled when we reached all of the other participants becase I couldn't believe I was actually the one racing (normally its hubby).

Matthew and I before the race.

Sporting the new running outfit. Waiting with the herd of people.

Prior to the start of the race they released white doves. This was very emotional for me. In an email before the race they said: "I have heard wonderful stories from many of you who have overcome incredible difficulties in your lives. Please continue to share them, if you’d like. We’d also like to thank Pam Staich for bringing her doves to the starting line. We honor the memory of your loved ones as we release them. We realize many of you will be running in honor of those angels in your lives. We hope you have a heavenly run!"

Releasing the doves

I was shocked at how many participants there actually were. I didn't want to be in front of the line and get trampled on, so I waited back. My plan was to let the herd go ahead of me and then start a few minutes after the gun. Just as I as passing the Starting Line, my brother in law Justin put the poster in front of the camera!

If you look close, you can see me peeking above the poster.

I was so inspired by the participants. Just after passing the starting line, I passed some incredible people. One man had an amputated leg, he was walking with crutches; another also on crutches; a runner pushing their family member in a wheel chair and countless others wearing "in memory" signs. It was quite an emotional site. I was happy that I started in the back for that reason, but found it difficult to pass people on the course once we entered the gardens.

on the courseI'm in the middle looking to my left.Approaching the finish line (the girl to my left is trying to beat me)YAY!!!! I did it! :) And I think I beat that girl too!A look of pain (the course was much more difficult than I anticipated).

I thought I did pretty well. I felt like I was going to passout when I crossed the finish line, but I recovered quickly and hubby was right there to take the sweet picture above and give me praise. After the official results were posted I found out I finished in the top 20 for the females in my age group. I finished in under 30 minutes and I averaged a 9:40 mile which was quicker than I had been in training.

Just after finishing L to R: Our friends Dorothy and Cameron, Matthew, me, Justin, Jenny and my MIL, Linda.
Hooray!Love this picture! :)

This has been such a growing experience for me. I've come to appreciate myself and understand that I can do anything I set my mind to. I've lost 20 pounds since starting the 30-day Shred and my 5K training. I'd like to run a 10K on Pioneer Day (July 24th), but because of my busy schedule I haven't had a chance to start training.

I wish my father could have been here to watch my race. I know it seems silly, a 5K really isn't a terribly long distance, but I honestly never expected that I could, or that I ever would finish. I can't believe it's been almost 7 years since he passed away. I think about him everyday and this experience has made me feel closer to him. He always loved running and it was something he tried to get me to love. I only wish it didn't take this long. I wish we could have enjoyed this together. When the doves were released at the starting line, I looked toward the sky and tears fell down my cheeks, at that moment I wished he was there cheering me on. I'm sure he was a lot closer than I realize.

I ran this race in honor of him, but more importantly, I ran this race for me. In taking time for myself, I realized that I am worth the time and the effort. I've learned that I have more to give others; I CAN love myself and feel amazing when I reach my goals, not because I received praise from another, but because I feel good about my accomplishments.