I am a MARATHONER.

Oh hi! I’m here because I promised all 3 of my readers that I would write a race recap from the Richmond Marathon. Oh yes, I ran a marathon this weekend. I am a marathoner. I am in the exclusive club. You know what? I haven’t stopped smiling since I crossed the finish line! This weekend was perfect. Every detail that went into this weekend could not have made for a more enjoyable experience for my first marathon. I am elated….. yes still.

I traveled down to Richmond on Thursday night with Gia, Meggie, and Katie. It was nice to get to travel with a group of women who have all had some great marathon experiences and we chatted away on our epic 6 hour road trip to Virginia. On Friday morning Katie and I headed to the airport to pick up Christine and then we made our way to the expo! I was kind of tired of the concept of an expo after spending a lot of time at the NYC one and I just wanted to get my bib and go! :) The rest of Friday was spent relaxing and waiting for the rest of #TeamRichmond to make their way down to Katie’s parents house. They arrived late and we were in bed with lights out by about 10:30. Honestly, I slept pretty well until about 5:00 am. I just sat in bed and thought about the past 16 weeks of my life: all my hard work, all the early mornings, all the good runs, all the bad runs… I thought about how today was going to make all of those things worth it because by early afternoon I would be a marathoner. I vowed to sit and think and pray and not look at my phone until someone’s alarm went off. I needed that time of reflection. I loved having that time to recall and remember all the hard work I had done. I was so ready for this day! A little after 6am everyone was awake and it was time to get ready! We got changed and started our pre-run rituals. Some girls had coffee, some had bagels, some had spoonfuls of peanut butter, some oatmeal, whatever it was we shared some nervous laughs and finally made our way out the door a little after 7am to drive over to the start. We arrived with time to check bags, and snap a couple of pictures before the 8am start time.

NYC TAKES ON RICHMOND!

It’s hilarious to me that this marathon was literally the ‘smallest’ race I have ever done with just over 6000 runners. The race promptly started at 8am and about 3 minutes later I was crossing the start line. I hit start on my Garmin and off I went. I couldn’t believe that I was really doing this. I was really going to run 26.2 miles. I kept a comfortable pace between 10:15-10:20 and listened to music. I had made a really great running mix and hearing different songs that reminded me of different friends/events made me smile. I replayed in my head some of the pointers my coach and other friends had given me. One that stood out often was to SMILE. I smiled so much. I was so happy. Miles 1-13.1 were incredibly enjoyable. There were lots of signs specifically for NYC marathon runners and it was so nice! I had several people talk with me since I had my NYC bib on and tell me how happy they were that I was there or that I even got to run a marathon after the cancellation of NY. During those miles there were some rolling hills that I was semi surprised by, but nothing too terrible. Overall I really loved the scenery of the course. (Sidenote: Richmond is not flat and this course was not ‘easy’ by any means.) When I crossed the halfway point I remember thinking to myself that I had less than 3 miles to go before hitting 16 when I could officially think of this race as being ‘less than 10’ miles to go. Ha! My coach told me NOT to countdown the miles until they were single digits in fear that the double digit would be too mental. I got to mile 16 and then it became about getting to mile 20 which I knew I could do because I had run 20 miles twice in training. I knew that this race would become harder after mile 20 no matter because of the nature of the sport. I just tried to remain focused and put one foot out in front of another. I was maintaining the same pace I did from the beginning and that was exciting! I continued to smile even though I was beginning to feel the pain. (No pain no gain, right?) Right before Mile 21 the unthinkable happened to me….. my hamstring cramped. My right hamstring cramped. Remember when my right leg is my good leg? My left knee, shin, and foot have all had some sort of injury this year and today of ALL days my right leg decided to cramp. I was NOT a happy camper. I had no idea what to do. “Do I push through this? What if something is wrong with my hamstring? Am I going to make it worse by finishing this marathon? I can’t quit. I have to finish. OMG it hurts. OW OW OW. Every step hurts. Ok, Leticia.. get it together you are going to finish no matter what! BELIEVE!” So after mile 21 I did what I like to say is a walk/run combo at times. I’d run for five minutes, walk for 30 seconds. I did that until mile 25 when I knew that I could do anything for 1.2 miles. I powered through those last miles in the worst pain I've ever felt while running. The 4:30 pace group passed me right at mile 22 and I knew that catching up to them was going to be hard, especially since now I was having to walk some because of the pain. At mile 25 I knew that I could break 4:40 so I pushed it as hard as I could. Right past mile 26, I started going downhill for the finish and I looked to the right side and I saw Katie! It was such a crucial moment for me to see someone I knew! I pointed at her and waved and she started jumping up and down. She joined me on the course for about a hundred yards and was yelling, “OMG, I’M SO PROUD OF YOU! LOOK AT YOUR TIME! YOU ARE ABOUT TO BE A MARATHONER!” I responded how everything hurt and that my leg was cramped and she was like ‘finish strong go get it’! I honestly don’t really remember passing the finish line. It was all a bit of blur. Katie came quickly to my rescue and got me water and led me to where the medals, blanket, and food were. I was so happy. I could not believe I had finished it despite all the pain I was in. My official time was 4:39:15. I am proud of my finish and could not be more thankful for all 26.2 miles and all that I learned about myself on that course. I am tougher than I thought and stronger than I imagined. I dug deep, finished strong and have zero regrets.

I was so happy to be done! 

This marathon was the hardest physical thing I have ever done in my life. Looking back on the past 16 weeks, I pushed myself to limits I never thought I could. Everything about this weekend was perfect. Getting to be surrounded before and after the race with friends who are a part of the NYC running community made this first marathon the best thing ever. If you know me, you know how incredibly excited I was to run the NYC Marathon, but I can say today that I am confident that Richmond was always supposed to by my first marathon. All things always work out in the end, and this was no exception.

I EARNED THIS.

I am blessed beyond belief by the amount of text/calls/emails/tweets, etc. I cannot thank you enough for all the support and encouragement I received after this accomplishment. I would not be the runner I am today with the community that surrounds me and pushes me to excel at something that I truly love. Thank you all and special thanks to two women who inspire me in more ways than they will ever know: Katie- my best runner pal in NY, and my coach, Michele. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

My mantra has always been BELIEVE, and on Saturday that's just what I did.

NYC Marathon…. I still want you…. Someday.

Front door. Best.Roommates.EVER! 

Hi! I'm alive!

Theme for Fall and Year #3 in NYC:

Friends:

Not that many people read this blog, but I AM BACK! I want to make blogging more of a priority this Fall since it will be my first season in NYC without being in Graduate School! It's been a crazy two years, but I am so so excited for what's in store in the coming months. The last time we spoke I shared with you all my plans to stay in New York but that I would be looking for a new job. On Thursday, I accepted a position to be the Coordinator of Registration at The King's College. Incredibly humbled to be offered a position to work with this College. This Friday, (the day I predicted 3 months ago) will indeed be my last day at Nyack College! God is so faithful to me.

This past Friday I celebrated not only a new job, but also two years of residing in New York City. I did all of my favorite things too: ate a bagel with one of my best friends, ran 10 miles with Katie, had a great afternoon with some of my favorite runners friends at Frying Pan, and then had a fantastic dinner with my dear friend, Jessica at Lure Fish Bar. I really cannot believe it has been TWO years. I vividly remember the day that I arrived. I was so so scared. I was so fearful of the unknown. Little by little, and month by month I grew accustomed to the craziness and began to truly fall in love with this place and the people of this place. I have made friends and memories that will truly last a lifetime. These two years have been some of the most challenging, stretching years of my entire life, but I've also learned so much: about God, myself, ministry, and life. I learned what it's like to rely on the prayers of your friends to get by each day. I've learned what it's like to truly miss my family. I've learned what true friendship is all about. I would not trade these years for anything. I am so confident and so sure that this is exactly where God has wanted me for these two years. I'm so excited about what's to come in this third year: new job, new roommate, running a MARATHON. Woot.

I have a blessed life. I hope to never forget that.

Some pics to document my summer:

Not FANTASTIC: I hurt my tibia and didn't run for 6 weeks.

FANTASTIC: Tonya spent the summer in NYC and 3/4 of the Fan Four were here! WOOT!

FANTASTIC: I hosted a cupcake/wine party for my runner friends!

FANTASTIC: One of my childhood best friends got married. I've known all these ladies for almost 20 yrs!

(Super) FANTASTIC: I finally met DAVID! YAY! He's wonderful and precious and so cute.

FANTASTIC: Summer 5K series with some of my speedy runner friends.

It's been a great summer! Here's to Fall and lots of new things.... cheers.

Update! Update! Update!

Ok friends, here's the update on my life! I know the suspense was killing all.... three of you.

So for the past couple months and in particular the past few weeks I had been thinking/praying/debating about whether or not I should move back to Texas. Don't get me wrong I love NY but Texas is home and eventually it's somewhere I can see myself moving back to later in my life. In this season of my life I'm in a little bit of 'limbo' because I just finished Graduate School but I do have a job here in NY. I was presented with a couple of really great job opportunities in Austin and even a place to live with a very dear friend of mine. I had been completely torn because as much as I wanted to stay, I knew a transition back to Austin would be relatively 'easy'. The cost of living is cheaper, job was in the works, and a lot of my friends are still there. So why not?

In the end, I came to the conclusion that I am just NOT ready to leave New York. I have been here for almost two years and in the past few months I've finally felt grounded. I love my apartment, my friends, my runnerds, and my church. And while leaving would be a 'safe' choice, I just can't do it right now. I love New York, and it's endless opportunities for adventures: both fitness and foodie related. I love that I've grown more as a person in my time here than any other season of my life. I love that this place is fast paced and always keeps me on my toes. I love that I feel stretched here. I love that I have true friends here who love me, and care for me. I have loved that this season has taught me a lot about trusting God and his plan for my life.

In addition, while I have 100% decided to stay and be committed to New York City and my life here, I spoke with my boss today and I will be transitioning OUT of my current position with the school. We work in 'seasons' and at the end of Fall recruitment I will be leaving my job regardless if I have another job or not! :) If you personally know me, you know this has been something that's been in the works for a long time and I can FINALLY see the end. My projected last day is: Friday, September 7th.

So... there ya have it! I'm going to Texas on vacation for 3 weeks at the end of June and when I return will begin the infamous job search so I'm not super poor after September!

Three cheers to OFFICIALLY staying in New York City. Here's to more adventures, laughs, long runs and good eats!

Brooklyn Half Recap

Yesterday, I ran and completed my fourth half marathon and third in the past three months. I'll be honest and say I'm pretty 'raced' out for now. I wish I were here to tell you of my original goal of 2hrs, but alas I finished in 2:07:04. A 16 second PR. A friend reminded me that a PR is a PR... so I'll take it.

I ran the BK half alongside 14,000+ runners which had an almost even split between men and women runners! It was a great course through Prospect Park, then down Ocean Parkway, all the way down to Coney Island and the famous boardwalk. I enjoyed this race, and I'd definitely consider doing it again.

The actual race:

I was feeling really great in the first 6 miles. I winded up seeing my friend, Erica, and seeing someone you know along the course is just so encouraging! Thanks for coming out, lady! Miles 1-6 were great, I took a GU at mile 7, and then headed out of the park onto Ocean. I had looked at my Garmin when I was at 6.5 and I was at 1 hr and 2 minutes and I told myself that if I could negative split the last half of the course that I'd be really close to 2hrs. I was hopeful at that point of a great PR and a really proud finish. When I hit mile 8, my knee, which had been bothering me all week (old injury, story for another day) starting getting really tight. I knew at that point it was no longer functioning at 100%. By mile 9, 10, my pace had slowed to the high 9:40's and I knew that the 2hr finish was slipping before my eyes. I tried to stay positive even though I was in pain. By mile 12 I was officially spent, mentally and physically but I knew that I was SO close to the finish, this was not the time to give up and walk. When I made it to the boardwalk and knew I had about 200m to go, I booked it and ran with everything I had (which wasn't much!) I saw my time and knew it was right at 2:07.

I went into the medical tent after receiving my medal because my knee needed to be wrapped immediately, and I just needed to sit down and drink some water. Eventually I made it through the crowds and found my best guy pal in the NYC, Andrew! Yesterday was his first half and he ROCKED it at 1:44:56. I am soooo proud of him!

We hung out in Coney Island for about 45 minutes and chatted about the race, stretched, and laughed (because he's hilarious). At the exact same moment we both got a whiff of Nathan's Hot Dogs and at that moment we knew it was time to GO! Ewww. We went back to his 'hood in Brooklyn and enjoyed a delicious brunch with our medals on! I was so thankful to have a good friend to share this day with! He agreed to run the Philly half with me in September. I have hooked him on this whole running thing! I love it!

When I got home last night after spending the whole day Brooklyn with friends I started replaying the race in my head: "how much time did I waste at the water stops?, should I have taken gu twice?, why were there so many hills in prospect park? should I have worn my knee brace?, etc." I was trying to remain positive and be proud of my finish, but I just couldn't shake the fact that I hadn't reached my goal AGAIN! I was frustrated and then all of a sudden I remembered the date. It was May 19th. A day that is so familiar to me because it's the day I graduated from UT. Yesterday marked my 6 year anniversary from that day and at that point I was probably the heaviest and most out of shape I had ever been in my life. When I thought about that and all that I've done the past 6 years I went from disappointed to proud. Some days it's about perspective, and I needed to get a grip and give myself some credit for the ability to run 13 miles! I never gave up, and never will. I know that I'll bust through 2hrs some day.

I dont even know that girl on the right. I feel like a brand new person!

Up next:

1. Speed Series 5K's in Brooklyn this summer

2. Philly Half Marathon in September

3. THE NEW YORK CITY MARATHON!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :)

Happy May 1st and what else I've been up to!

Hello friends! It's been a while! I apologize for the lack of posts but well life happens sometimes. I am currently in the midst of training for my 3rd Half Marathon of this Spring. It's been fun, but needless to say I'm excited for a break from 'racing' and will enjoy just running for the next couple of months before official NYC Marathon training begins on Monday, July 2nd! It will be here before I know it :)

So I have some BIG news. I have thought about how to go about this for quite some time but well it just never came to me so I figured I might as well just put it out there....

On Saturday, May 5th I will graduate from a Masters Degree Program I have been working on for the past two years. What?! I know some of you are very surprised because quite frankly I have not talked about it on zee blog or on twitter. There are things about my life I decided to keep to myself. Not for any particular reason but solely because I made the decision to stick to blogging/tweeting about fitness/running. I don't talk a ton about my personal life at times, but I wanted to share this with you all!

So yes, last Thursday I turned in all of my documents for the completion of a Masters Degree. I have been attending the same school that I work for Nyack College- Alliance Theological Seminary. I completed a degree in Urban Ministry. Yes, I went to school to study about theology, the church, and how the church functions in a Urban setting aka, New York City.

I need you to know that I am a Christian first, and a runner second :) My faith is something that is really important to me and I wanted to come to a deeper understanding of the things that I believe are most important in life.

There ya have it folks.

FAQ:

Now that you are done are you moving back to Texas? No. I am planning to continue living and working and running in New York City.

Are you changing jobs? No. I will continue to work at the school as an Admissions Associate and I'm an intern at my church.

Why couldn't you ever run on Saturday mornings? Because this semester I was finishing up my last two classes. Yes, 14 weeks of Saturday classes. It was tough!

How did you manage a job, a masters degree program, and running? I have no idea. By the grace of God.

More questions, just ask :)

My family will be in town this weekend to celebrate! Woohoo!

More/Fitness Recap

Going into More/Fitness my overall goal was only to finish strong. In my opinion I finished DC in a horrible condition and I never wanted to experience that again. My ultimate goal in the half marathon distance is to break 2hrs, and let's face it, in Central Park that was realistically probably not going to happen. Not to be a debbie downer, but Central Park is tough, and two loops around the park, and a part of a third? Yeah, not easy. Or not easy for this girl! :)

My morning started liking every other race (all 3 of them) have before with a whole wheat thin, peanut butter, and a banana. I chugged 32 oz of water from 6-7am and then split a cab with my neighbor, Theodora. I checked my bag and made it over to the corrals. I signed up for this race a long time ago and somehow ended up in the last corral. Looking around I realized I knew I wasn't THAT slow and I just couldn't fathom starting at the back of 7000 runners. I cheated (shhh) and moved up about 4 corrals and started in the middle of the pack. It started raining while we waited and I was definitely not a happy camper. Luckily by the time the gun went off it had cleared. My Garmin had a perfect signal before I got to the start line but must have gone into power save mode and then lost it RIGHT when I got to the start line (Awesome). I crossed the start and realized I needed to go regardless of the Garmin having a signal or not. I think it caught a signal pretty quick as I ended the race right at 13.11.

The race: miles 1-3 were great, I felt fine, weaved out from some slow runners/walkers (why were people already walking at 1.5?) and kept a steady pace. When I got the top of Harlem Hill something was going on my with my stomach and I was definitely worried. I pressed on and somehow it passed. Whew! I thought I'd be seeing some friends at mile 5, but alas I missed them. I shot around one loop of the park and was feeling ok. I wasn't looking at my Garmin much and just wanted to run. Again, was never sure of an actual time goal. I knew I'd be seeing my roommates in between mile 7-8 so I pushed through to them. I could see them from afar and they started screaming with signs! I am so blessed :) At mile 8, my besties in NYC were going to be there to hand me a bottle of water. I saw them from afar opened my GU packet and got to them said THANK YOU and kept going. The GU didn't do much for me as far as energy but I figured it was best I take something. My good friend Morgan and her cute dog were right at the Engineers Gate and seeing them made me so happy too! I pressed on through the East Side and met the Harlem Hills again. UGH. By the time I passed those and got to mile 10 I was pretty done. My legs were very tired, felt very heavy, and even my left knee was starting to hurt. I contemplated walking just to get a little break but I have too much pride for that :) I knew I'd be seeing some friends at mile 11. I saw them, more signs, more cheering. It lifted my spirits some but I was could tell my pace had slowed down a lot. Finally made it to mile 12 and I was like, ok, Leticia only 1.1 left. You can do anything for 10 minutes. A little past mile 12 I saw Jocelyn hauling right in my direction! I immediately lifted my hands and was waving like a crazy person. She was running 22 yesterday so she wasn't quite done. Seeing her absolutely made the rest of the run so good! I kept up with her speedy pace and she made that last mile fly! We split ways at mile 13 and she went up Cat Hill and I sprinted to the finish. I felt SO STRONG in the end and I was glad I pushed that last mile. I finished with a huge smile on my face and was just so happy to be done! I had no idea what my time was because I knew my Garmin was off and when I sprinted through the finish I didn't look at what the clock read. I found my friends and we snapped a pic! Half marathon #3 in the books with a big smile to prove it! To God be the Glory each race, thankful for His strength!

Post run I went an capitalized on my free hat/massage/snacks at Athleta and then went to brunch at Lansky's with my besties, and some other twitter friends were there too! At brunch I discovered my official time of 2:08:07 with and average 9:47 pace. No PR, but proud of my time. I never walked even when my legs tried to convince me to and I finished strong which is what I wanted. Central Park is no joke, even when you train there. It's just so different in a race!

Sara and I at brunch. All I wanted in my life was a mimosa and pancakes and that's exactly what I got! :)

So what's next? NYRR Brooklyn Half Marathon on Saturday, May 19th. Now this race my friends I has some BIG goals for. I really really really want this to be the sub-2 half. It's a relatively flat course and I think a PR is in the cards for me if I'm smart the next four weeks. Here we go!

PS: 201 days till the NYC MARATHON! I officially registered with Team World Vision today! Feels a tad bit surreal! 26.2 miles! I CAN do this.

"Running is a mental sport and we are ALL insane."

Thoughts on a week of rest!

This is my friend Jaclyn and I last Sunday at brunch in DC! She completed her first half marathon last weekend and I am SO proud of her. She's been one of my best friends for almost 10 years now and any time spent with her is beyond enjoyable. She is truly one of my favorite people on this earth!

Since we are talking about last Sunday, let's go ahead and say that it's also the last time my feet have hit the pavement. I went on a shakeout run with Theodora last Sunday night when I got home from DC and haven't ran since. Not because I didn't want to, but because I physically could not. Post race I was having a decent amount of pain in my right shin and figured that with compression sleeves/rest it might help. On Monday the pain increased, and moved from my shin down to my ankle. On Tuesday morning when I woke up after sleeping in the sleeves, I could tell that my ankle was very very swollen. I could barely walk. Each step was a painful reminder that something was wrong. By Wednesday night the pain had diminished some, and on Thursday my doctor friend took a look at it and said that while it was swollen it did not seem to be anything too drastic. He assured me that rest/ice/elevation were very very important in the next few days, and said he wanted me to rest from running for an entire week which would mean no running till Monday. I am planning on heading out for 3-4 miles tomorrow morning and praying that my body cooperates.

I feel like despite the frustrating feeling of not being able to run (or walk comfortably for that matter) I've had a lot of time to think about running and what role I want it to play in my life. This week had lots of up and downs... both emotionally and physically. I wondered and questioned my training, my body, my endurance, my passion, my goals, my desires, etc. I had lots of time to think since I wasn't working out! I came to the conclusion that running is and will be a big part of my life for a long time, but I've also realized that I want to be smart. I put a TON of pressure on myself before last weekend. I had a meltdown when I realized how many hills there were and that's just not something that needs to happen. That much pressure takes the fun out of what this should be about! Here's the thing. I want to ENJOY running without the pressure of feeling like I have to PR every single time. Yes, it's important to set goals and push yourself, but not to the level where it's the most important thing in your life. The bottom line is that I love running, but running doesn't define me, and never will. It's a part of my life, but not my life. I want to get better sure, but not at the cost of injuring myself for good. I want to move forward and be smart and truly always listen to my body. I am not superwoman. And while some may disagree, 13.1 miles is a respectable distance. It's not a joke what your body goes through in those 2+hrs. Maybe this week was needed both for physical rest, but also for me to be able to have a more healthy relationship with running in my mind. I'm excited about races to come, and want to excel, but not at the cost of my sanity! :) This is a recreation, not my job! In 3 weeks from today I'll run the More/Fitness half and after this week I'll evaluate what my goals can realistically be!

Happy Sunday, friends!