Let’s start with the most important thing that’s happening these days: the girls are three months old!

They’ve become super interested in everything around them, focusing on images and our faces, each other, and their giggles are the absolute cutest. It’s also really convenient that they have each other when I pop them on their play gym (bonus of having twins I suppose)! Both have officially doubled their weight and are growing out of clothes like crazy. I can’t wait to see how much they change and grow over the next few months. I also have one more month of maternity leave, so soaking it in the best I can.

Since racing season is upon us (and races are back!), I thought I’d put together some tips for running a half marathon. I’m BY NO MEANS an expert, so keep that in mind and am just sharing things that I’ve learned in the past (and drawing from many mistakes that I’ve made along the way):

Start slower than your ‘goal pace’. Maybe even a minute per mile slower than what you anticipate running the race at. Everyone goes faster at the beginning of races, so you’ll probably just be running your actual goal race pace if you start in a slower corral (if possible).

Have a few mantras and songs on your playlist that get you fired up. When the going gets tough (which it most likely will- normally miles 8 & 11 are the toughest for me), I like to draw upon positive mantras or pop a song on my playlist that makes me feel totally bada**. Macklemore or Eminem and my mantra of ‘attitude of gratitude’ normally do it for me.

Don’t forget to smile. Smiling relaxes your body and brings you happy endorphins. There’s nothing worse than doing something that you’re not enjoying. Try to enjoy the experience- even if it really is just a ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ sort of situation.

Do your training runs, but know it’s ok if bumps in the road happen. Be gentle on yourself if you have to skip a few runs, but stick to your training plan otherwise. Know that training runs build on each other, so skipping one isn’t a huge deal, but skipping several generally will lead to less-than-ideal situation. Also know that if your goal is to just finish and you’ve done 80-90% of your training runs, you’ll do great.

Don’t do anything new on race day. Yes, that includes new shoes, clothes, nutrition- any of these things can really hinder your race. Take it from someone who wore a sports bra that she hadn’t trained in before and finished the race with a terrible chafe that made showering in hot water nearly impossible.

Have fun and remember your WHY- Why’d you sign up for the race to begin with? Draw back on those initial feelings when it gets hard. Enjoy yourself and imagine how good it’s going to feel when you cross that finish line. Be your own cheerleader after each mile marker. And when it gets really tough, break down those miles into markers even smaller- maybe 1/2 mile or sometimes when it’s really challenging- I think about the next minute or tell myself to ‘just run through this song’ and then re-assess. It really is almost all mental when it comes to race day. It will go by so fast, so enjoying it and soaking in the experience really is the most important part.

-What tips do you have for someone running their first half marathon?