I did it!

I still can't quite believe it but, against quite a few odds (general lack of fitness, a natural tendency towards laziness, the fact that I've actually always hated running - to name but a few), I completed the Great Midlands Fun Run yesterday.

Not only did I complete it but I *ran the whole way*.

Amazingly, I didn't collapse in a heap halfway through (which I was half-expecting to do and had already decided to blame on heat exhaustion).

Even more amazingly, I didn't start crying or whining or expressing exercise-related-distress vocally in any way at any point (I did 'exclaim' loudly when a bloke who I'm assuming had pulled a muscle hopped across the road right in front of me... but I don't think that counts).

I'm not saying it was easy because it really *really* wasn't (the intense aches and pains in my legs today are proof enough of that) but it certainly wasn't the kind of oxygen-depriving nightmare I might have envisaged had you told me this time last year that I would be taking part in an 8.5 mile race.

It didn't start that well though. Mark and I had sensibly decided to place ourselves reasonably close to the back, due to the fact that my average running speed is only slightly faster than walking. Naively (as it turns out) we assumed that other people would be organising themselves in this way as well so as to keep the road as clear as possible for the more serious runner types who wanted to go faster. However, within a few minutes of crossing the start line, I realised that this wasn't the case and I expended rather a lot of energy early on trying to side-step and weave and otherwise manoeuvre my way around groups of people who were already walking, all the while trying to make sure that I didn't inadvertantly lose Mark whilst doing so.

Thankfully, the further we got away from the start line, the more people spread out. I always seemed to have walkers ahead of me (unavoidable, I guess, when you run as slowly as I do) but at least the rest of the run was decidedly less claustrophobic than that first kilometre.

I had been worrying about how I would cope past the 10K mark (as this was the furthest distance I had ever run before this race) and was quailing slightly in the face of 'Cardiac Hill' (which seems to have achieved legendary status as a 'really bad hill'). Happily, though, both of these fears were unfounded. True, my legs were starting to hurt a bit after 10K but I didn't feel unendurably tired and as for the infamous 'Cardiac Hill'... well, that, if anything, was a bit of a disappointment. When we got to the top, I turned to Mark and said 'Was that it??'. Seriously, these people should try around here or, if they're really extreme, Mid Wales if they want *proper* hills!

Here are some things I learned from this run:

- It's a good idea to dress up as a banana if you want people to cheer you on (however it's not all positive: some people may make really bad puns/jokes as you run by and some small children may delight in spraying you with water pistols and then running away shrieking 'I got the banana! I got the banana!')

- If said person dressed as a banana keeps overtaking you and then being overtaken by you again in a continuous cycle of groundhog-day-esque overtaking, it can get quite annoying!

- Running and trying to drink water from a plastic cup simultaneously can only lead to disaster

- There are *loads* of rabbits in Sutton Coldfield (sorry: I know that's not running related but seriously, there were *loads*)

The most important thing I've learned, though, is that I am actually capable of doing something that I find difficult, of sticking at it and achieving the goals that I set for myself. And I've also learned that just because I was always rubbish at PE at school, that doesn't mean that I can't enjoy sport and exercise as an adult. No one cares that I'm slow (apart from me...sometimes) and I'm not in competition with anyone else.

I actually got quite emotional when, after six months of training and effort and pushing myself, I finally crossed the finish line.

However, this was promptly knocked out of me by a 'helpful' race volunteer who proceeded to spray me with a fire hose!

Thanks to everyone who sponsored me, everyone who said encouraging things about the race and everyone who stopped by to read this blog - you are all extremely fab and lovely :-).

Roll on the next challenge!!

Stats for this run:

Distance: 13.68K
Time: 1 hour 52 minutes and 42 seconds
Average K pace: 8 minutes 14 seconds (fastest ever - random!)

***It's still not too late to sponsor me if you would like to! You can find my sponsorship page here***