Run Wine Country Healdsburg Half Marathon Recap

I am finally getting around to my race recap from a few weekends ago! I definitely go through phases with running. I will go a long period of time not running at all, besides a few miles on the treadmill at the gym. And then there are times like these, where I get super motivated to achieve a goal and have the urge to sign up for a bunch of races. My biggest piece of advice is that if you have even the slightest curiosity about running a 5k, half or full marathon DO IT! You won’t regret it. The feeling after a race is unlike any other.

My outfit details: Lululemon tank (new and LOVE!) / Lululemon shorts (all time favorites)/ Feetures Socks / Asics GT2000 Shoes (I usually run in Nike but these have been really supportive and blister free!) / Garmin Forerunner GPS (cant go without) / Hat: $5 I bought at race expo (best deal ever)

The Run Wine Country Healdsburg Half was definitely a last minute add on for me! I didnt train as much as I would have liked and of course left the long training run to the weekend before! Oops! My training consisted of a bunch of short runs (4-5 miles) 3-4 times a week for the 2 weeks leading up. Then a long 10 miler the Sunday prior! It was a killer but I’m glad I did it. On the days that I didnt get outside to train, I did HIIT/speed work on the treadmill at the gym along with a little strength training. It was interesting running more then weight training and seeing my body change. I actually lost a lot of muscle and didnt loose as much weight as I thought I would. I feel much more confident while focusing more on my gym workouts rather then running! So it was a nice little reminder to me that cardio is not always the key to loosing weight or “getting toned”.

The race was so much fun. I always really look forward to getting out there and competing (with myself). Considering the lack of long training runs, it turned out not to be so bad. There were more hills then I expected but when you are in the zone, you learn to push on and not stop! The key is not stopping. If you stop, your body tightens and it makes it harder to start again. I paced myself pretty well, but then the last few miles were all mental. I was tired and wanted to stop so bad, so I literally kept talking myself into getting my butt to the finish line as fast as possible! My time was 1:50 at an average 8:27 min/mile pace. It was not a PR for me, but I was still super happy with my results. Jeff once again wins boyfriend of the year for supporting my sporadic, sudden urges to run. He got up at 5am (or maybe even 4:30am) to watch the race (and of course take all of my pictures). 😉

Next up is the Wine Country Half (again in Healdsburg) in 2 weeks! I told you, when I have the urge…. 🙂 My Mom and brothers girlfriend are running the 5k as well so it should be a lot of fun! If you are interested in running the half or 5k I have a $10 off code! Use code: DRJENNA for any Destination Races events! I will also be running Santa Barbara and Sonoma to Napa half coming up this year and you can use my code for those as well.

Thank you for reading and continuing to support me. It means the world! xx