✨ Steph ✨

A little PSA about the Santa Barbara Half Marathon. ❤️ I had a feeling I could do it. Something in me genuinely believed I was going to cross that finish line. Maybe I was crazy for thinking that, but my heart wanted to do it so badly. Unfortunately, I didn’t finish. But I wanted to share my experience, especially for other runners considering the SB Half Marathon. The sweepers passed me at mile 4, and I STILL kept going. I didn’t care. I wanted to finish. I wasn’t necessarily tired or out of energy. I felt like I had more to give, but my body wasn’t cooperating. My feet started feeling weird (you can even see how visible my veins became, which had never happened to me before). I started cramping, and I had a blister forming underneath my foot. Every step became more painful, and eventually, my body just wouldn’t let me keep moving forward. I fueled every 30 minutes and stayed hydrated, so I know I did what I could in that department. But those hills?! I was NOT prepared for them. Coming from a flat city where I don’t have access to trails or hills to train on, that was a whole different experience. And yes, I know I didn’t train for this race. But having completed a half marathon before, I genuinely thought I could push through and do it again. I underestimated the course, and I learned that the hard way. I was SO upset earlier because I wanted that finish so badly. But after giving myself some time, I’m choosing to celebrate the 8.8 miles I DID complete. That’s still something to be proud of. I think I’ll be seeing Santa Barbara again. Except next time, I’ll come prepared, train for those hills, and cross that finish line STRONG. 💪❤️ Not the finish I wanted, but definitely not the end of my story. #DNF #runtok #running #sloweunner #halfmarathontraining