The Race That Dreams Are Made Of

I know, I know. I’ve been absent. And you’d think my first post after my hiatus would be about the enormous move we made from Scotland back to our homeland. Or the fact that my new favorite city is Paris. I promise those posts are in the works. Along with dozens of other posts that I’m dying to write. But today is more of an ode to the city we left behind. 

When we had first moved to Scotland, one of my friends had brought up to me that there was a half marathon every May in Edinburgh. It intrigued me solely because it meant friends were willing to come visit and run the race with me. I immediately signed up. Unfortunately, do to… well… life, no one else could do the race. Kind of a bummer. But I knew I still wanted to run. 

Flash forward a few months later and I find out that we’re going to be able to move back to Minnesota. In May! I was able to acquire a job in my field and my husband’s classes were wrapping up mid-April. Our lease was up at the end of the month and really, there were no other loose ends to tie up. Except for the race. It was happening within the last three days of living in this beautiful city. Instead of scrapping it, I chose to run it. Even if it meant that our timeline for leaving would feel incredibly hectic. 

Let me tell you: I’m not sure if it was the weather, the energy, the views of the city, the fact that we were leaving so soon, or a mixture of all of it, but it’s one of my favorite races of all time. High praise. 

The race started us near the main campus of the University of Edinburgh, wound us around to Princes Street, down the Royal Mile, past Arthur’s Seat, down to Portobello beach and ended us in Musselburgh. That’s where we’ve spent the last nine months living. I can’t tell you how many days I’d walk up and down Princes Street. Or how I used the Royal Mile to get to my gym. Or how we found ourselves on nice days visiting Aurther’s Seat and the surrounding area. Or the time we walked all the way to the beach even though it was January. It was a run through my memories that we had made. It was something incredibly special. This race kind of sealed up my journey in Scotland. 

There were a few other reasons it quickly became my favorite race. One being I hit a PB! Not only did I hit a PB, but I shaved off eight minutes off my time! What! Who does that? This girl. Right here. I’d like to thank the downward slope and the incredibly cloudy, cool day that made running a breeze. The other highlight was the fact that I ran continuously for nine miles. My last half I could only make it to seven before I needed a break. This race I felt like I could have run a few more if my knees didn’t feel shot from constant decline towards the ocean. Yep, definitely hobbled for a good 24-36 hours post-race.  

While I may never get the opportunity to run this race again, I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat. I think sometimes we get stuck in the idea that races are too hard, too far, too scary, etc. etc. The list goes on as to why we shouldn’t do them. Believe me, after the Lake Minnetonka Half I told myself I’d never ever run another half. And here I am, two under my belt and ready to sign up for my next race. There’s something empowering being able to finish a race, whether it’s a 5k or a marathon. Whether you walk, run or something in between. It’s something YOU did by yourself. No one helped you. 

Added my latest medal and bib to the collection! 

I can tell you, after I finished this race, being sore in my knees but feeling pretty good overall, nothing made me smile more than receiving my race bling (Ooo shiny medals!) and having the volunteer tell me “nice job!” They are right, I did a nice job. Even if I didn’t complete the race in the time I wanted, or I walked when I shouldn’t have, or whatever excuse you got. Think about how many people DON’T take on the challenge of a race. And if you can do this, what else can you do? 

That might be why I run. The high of knowing that my body can do something so amazing, like propel myself forward for hours. And knowing that I can tackle an obstacle such as this, and come out swinging. 

What is it that you do that makes you feel invincible? Something that keeps propelling you forward? 

If you feel incredibly motivated to run a race now, check out my blog post about finding your perfect race! 

Always, 
A