Where Amy Runs

I tried to relax my face, hold back my smile, but I couldn't--I was having the best time ever. I only looked at my watch from miles 1-3, to make sure I didn't go out too fast...and those were my hardest miles. From then on, I ran based on feel, and I felt great.  At the Cape Henry lighthouse around the 10k mark. I never had a moment of digging deep. I kept it light. Initially I thought, ok, the race begins at the half-marathon point. I was still feeling light then, so I thought, ok, the race begins at 18 miles, when we turn around. I still felt light then, so finally I thought, ok, the last 10k is the race. And then, I pushed it to 5k. Even still, I felt comfortable, light, natural, wild, fun. I ran all 26.2 miles for joy. I was fully present for every step. A brief reprieve from the headwind during the final mile! As I entered that final 10k, I had no idea what my actual pace was, but I felt I was getting faster and stronger (in spite of a full on headwind). When I had a momen...

What a journey it was to get to the start of the SoNo Half in 2022. After what was anything but a straightforward journey to a positive pregnancy test, I had a beautiful, uncomplicated birth in July (shoutout to doulas everywhere and especially mine).   I was fortunate enough to resume running less than 2 weeks after welcoming my daughter to the world. However, I sustained a minor injury to my butt (literal pain in the butt) when rushing home to breastfeed her. I had to laugh at myself! As a result, I spent about a month exclusively speed walking as I recovered.  Just as I gained confidence to run again, I felt something wasn't quite right. An ultrasound showed that I had retained a tiny piece of placenta...for 8 weeks!! I promptly scheduled my surgery. I recovered incredibly quickly, and picked up running right where I'd left off. I impulsively signed up for the SoNo half marathon. Logistically, the start/finish is less than a mile from my house, so, why not!? I got a li...