Anyone else out there wonder how they will make it through a 13.1 mile run (aka a half marathon)? I saw a post from someone in the IR4 Facebook about their strategy, where they dedicate each mile to ‘someone’ and keep a list of these dedications with them during their run. I loved this idea from the moment I saw it, and I have adopted it for my own running.

Harpers Ferry Half Marathon mileage dedications. Yes, I do follow these!

The night before a race, I take time to write my list of dedications…and I take this very seriously. During the race, I mediate on the person/s for that mile and use the time to talk to them, pray for them and remember/think about them. It helps me to keep moving forward and honestly, it helps the miles and time to pass so much faster than I realize. In fact, there are some races and training runs where I don’t feel like I am ready to be finished (if you can believe that…)! I lovingly write the list, work to memorize it, place it in a plastic bag, and include it as my race ‘gear’ that I run with. If I need some help remembering to whom I I dedicated a particular mile, I pull the list out when I am running and read it, re-centering my thoughts and ensuring that I continue to mediate on and pray for those on the list.

This has proven well for my half marathons. I think my only question is how will I handle 26.2 miles? Will I have enough dedications for 26 miles (the 0.2 will be for me), or should I make my list of 13 and go through it twice? Still debating how to handle this to ensure that I remain true to my reasons for running!