I finished the Nike Women’s Half Marathon yesterday!
Woo hoo! I’ll get to that box in a bit but first, here’s my Marvelous race weekend details 
We headed into the city early Saturday morning to check out the expo and hang cruise around.
The expo was fun but of course was packed! So many people it was hard to do much of anything. We went to the Nike store also to check out the official SF half marathon running gear but they were out of pretty much every size that any of us could wear so no suck luck.
We walked to a local pub/restaurant to relax, catch up with a friend and enjoy some food
I had a yummy salad from a restaurant next door to the pub called Boxed Lunch that had organic greens, Mary’s chicken, goat cheese, beets, and apples. Minus the bread
We went and checked into our hotel that was near the finish line then walked down to the harbor,
It was a gorgeous walk with perfect weather
We walked back and I rehydrated with a Maple Water from Whole Foods.
Have you guys heard of this stuff before? I first tried it at the Idea World expo but hadn’t seen it in stores until recently. It’s supposed to be the new coconut water with benefits such as prebiotics, manganese, antioxidants and half the sugar of coconut water. However, it has mixed reviews. Regardless I thought it tasted pretty good and definitely felt refreshed!
We walked to a nearby restaurant called Mamacita’s for dinner. The lighting was poor so no pictures but I had a fish ceviche and we all shared house made chips and guacamole. Yum!
We headed back, set out our race gear then hit the sack!
Lululemon pants, Ohm tank, Nike pullover, Mizuno shoes, banana, Justin’s Almond Butter, Vega Energizer, sport gel and refueling mix. All set and ready to go!
We were up before our alarms went off filled with anticipation for the mornings events. Out the door by 5:50 and at the race by 6:10!
Along with 25, 000 other people…
(Image courtesy of Nike.com)
I’m somewhere in there
They started us based on our estimated pace and we were in the 10:00 – 10:30 pace. which meant even though the race began around 6:30 we didn’t actually cross the start line until after 7:00. I had planned to stay with my friends, stopping to take pictures but I just couldn’t help dodging and weaving through the crowd to get into the clear. I like to have my own personal space when I run and have a hard time slowing down. Which resulted in me realizing I was solo around mile 1. Which was fine. I was in my own world enjoying my music and in my own zone.
The course itself was pretty cool!
(Image courtesy of Nike.com)
A good chunk of it was through Golden Gate Park which was gorgeous!
(Image courtesy of Nike.com)
There were some hills of course and one in particular at mile 10 that was pretty intense. It seriously seemed never ending but once I made it to the top I knew it was all downhill from there!
(Image courtesy of Nike.com)
By far the best part of the course was all the encouraging spectators and cheer groups. Every mile or less there was a sponsored group cheering us on plus the friends, family and just random strangers that stood along the course cheering everyone on. Some of the signs had me cracking up! One guy by an outhouse had a sign that said, “Run now, poop later!” A guy near the finish held up a sign that said, “Hurry up I’m late for brunch!” Then my favorite was some guy at the end who’s sign said, “I’m just some random stranger but I’m so proud of you!”
Once I crossed the finish line and was handed my Tiffany necklace, I was a little sad I didn’t have my friends there by my side.
However it was nice getting done before the majority of the crowd so I was able to enjoy the stretching and finisher tent.
Foam rolling, Suja Juice then some Finisher gear I was set! When I ventured back out 30 minutes later the crowd and lines were out of control!
Crazy! But so worth it.
During this race I didn’t turn on my Map my Run or wear my Fitbit so I had no idea what my pace was as I ran. All of my past races I was constantly worrying about my pace and finishing by a certain time. It made this race even more enjoyable to just go at my natural pace while enjoying all that the race offered. The cheering stations, the gorgeous scenery, the fun signs and the race spectators. I ended up finishing in 2:08 which I was pretty surprised at. I didn’t go crazy training this time, I didn’t try to beat a personal best, and I didn’t pay attention to how I was running during the race. I just did it and had a blast!
Such an amazing race and I’m so thankful to Whole Foods for sponsoring me for this race!
QUESTIONS –
- Have you ever run the Nike Women’s Half Marathon or marathon?
- Can you hang with crowds or are you like me and hightailing it out of there?
- Best race you’ve ever run?
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