The run. 

This was the hardest physical and mental experience I have gone through within my twenty years of age. I know what you may be thinking, why would you do this or what made you do this? I am a bit of a fitness nut and like to test myself so, I gave myself almost two whole months to get ready for a half marathon. 

I’ll be honest. I was humbled multiple times and faced with the realization of how hard this was.  Asking myself, can I do this? Am I capable of running for 13.1 miles? When all of those negative thoughts creep in, you have two options. You can choose to give up and let everyone be right about you, or you can say I am going to push through to prove my worth. 

So, in every long run when the distance would get longer, the mental battle would get tougher. Doing something hard or unfamiliar can teach you a lot about yourself. That is something running taught me, how to push across the finish line. How to keep one leg moving in front of the other. When my body was quitting on me, my knees had a sharp shooting pain from running on concrete the past ten miles, I let my mind tell me just give me one more step. That step would translate into another three miles.

The overwhelming support I felt on each loop was a significant sign to keep on pushing forward. Having my parents and my best friend hand me electrolytes helped me realize something – I was not alone in this mental and physical battle. Even though they may not be right next to me, I continued to put one foot in front of the other. They showed belief in me that I can do this. 

I am a huge advocate for mental health and like any other twenty year old I have dealt with battles with anxiety, being overwhelmed, and the whole lot of it. Running has only benefited my life since beginning the past two summers. 

It has served as an outlet or step away from reality. I never bring my phone while running and never listen to music. I let the miles take me to moments in my life where I was truly happy or proud. Running allows me to be in the moment, the present, the now. 

During my training there were many times I had to stop due to cramping, pain, etc. I stopped then screamed a couple of words I can not put in print. I would get so annoyed at not succeeding at whatever my daily run was. Running taught me in those dark times, that’s where you should live. This is because that is what will teach you the most about yourself. 

So, yeah at mile ten, during my half marathon, I didn’t stop yet. I keep on putting one foot in front of the other because I had a goal to reach. Yes, during those times when it felt as my knee was getting stabbed, I was screaming a couple of words I can’t repeat. However, I chose to tackle that pain by proving that I am capable of running 13.1 miles without stopping. 

So, when I looked at my watch and it said 12.9 miles ran already I knew the finish line was right there. Looking up to see my dad with his phone out smiling at how proud he is of me, other runners cheering me on, and lastly my mother at the finish line smiling cheek to cheek. I knew right there in that moment, I had done something I was extremely proud of. My goal was to run the half marathon under two hours and thirty minutes, I looked at the clock realizing I crushed that goal. 

At that moment, I knew this run was more than the miles.