13.1

                   First of all...I'm sorry for leaving this poor little blog in the dust for the past few weeks! I really don't want to make excuses but FYI, I'm finally done with my hectic spring classes and I'm home in California! To make up for my horrible blogging skills, I will be putting a couple of more posts up this week!                
                  So in case you were wondering why this title is 13.1...I finally ran my half marathon! The theme of the Utah Valley Marathon is "Pain You Enjoy" and I definitely understand why now! Although I literally walked like a penguin for the following 2 days after my race, I can honestly say I enjoyed every minute of those 13.1 miles! I loved being surrounded by beautiful scenery and  by so many people who were striving to reach their goals. Let me give you the inside scoop on the race day!

 3:30 am- Woke up, ate some toast with Peanut Butter and bananas and headed over to the Provo Mall where buses shuttled all of the runners to the start!

Ran into some friends before the race :)

 This was my view from the bus: Tons of runners huddled up around fire pits trying to stay warm, stretching, and making sure to hit up the bathrooms. Pumped me up for sure!

   Warm and ready to go! The sun was dying to come out!

The start of the race...pretty!

The photographer caught me cruisin' through the canyon!

1 hour and 44 minutes later...all done!



After crossing the finish line, I loaded up on all of the free replenishing snacks and drinks and got a much needed massage :)  Definitely one of the best parts of my day because my calves were on FIYA!

Goal accomplished! I ended up getting 10th place in my division!

      Training and dedicating myself to this race was one of the coolest things I've ever done. I think it was even more worthwhile because I struggled at times during the preparation. Basically, my body was a mess for a while! I had to take a week off for my stubborn little knees and then I iced one too long (I still have the ugly evidence).  My first aid teacher told me I gave myself a little case of frost bite...that made me feel brilliant haha. Then once my knees were ready to cooperate again, my ankle started bugging me and I had to whip out a brace. The obstacles kept sneaking up on me! But despite all of this, I prayed that I would be able to do my best with as little pain as possible and I did it!
           This has taught me so much about determination and faith. You can't just sit around and expect to make progress in life. It there's a desire in your heart, nurture it.  Once you are 100% positive that you are going to work towards your goal, start taking a few steps at a time. Lastly and most importantly, have faith in yourself. If you don't think you can do it, you can't expect others to believe in you and provide support.
           Now that being said, if you have any desire to run a half or even a full marathon, I challenge you to do it! It's a great way to stay on top of your cardiovascular health and become more in tune with your individual mental strength. Well that's all I have for now! Keep checking for a new recipe!

                                                      love always,

    Rita