My Half-Marathon Journey

Back in late April, I had the slightly crazy idea to run a half marathon in June. It felt like a massive, almost impossible goal at the time. My runs were sporadic, and the thought of covering 21.1 kilometers felt like a world away. But something about the challenge sparked a fire in me, and I decided to commit. I jumped headfirst into intensive training, and the last six weeks have been a blur of sweat, sore muscles, and pavement.

Visualizing the Proof

To keep myself honest and motivated, I started meticulously tracking my runs. Today, I exported all that data and decided to visualize it. There’s something incredibly powerful about seeing your effort laid out in a chart. It turns abstract feelings of "getting better" into concrete, undeniable proof.

Distance Progress

Looking at the first graph, which tracks my distance over time, tells the story perfectly. You can see the early days in April, where a 5km run felt like a major accomplishment. Then, heading into May, the line starts to climb. Those were the grinding weeks—pushing myself to 8km, then 10km, then seeing that 15km run appear on the chart. That was a huge mental barrier for me to break. The graph shows not just an increase in distance, but an increase in consistency and ambition.

Pace Progress

The second graph, tracking my pace, tells a different but equally important story. In the beginning, my pace was all over the place, often hovering around 8 or 9 minutes per kilometer, especially on hillier routes. But as the weeks went on, a clear downward trend emerged. The line shows how the hard work started to pay off. It’s not a straight line to victory, there are still tough days and slower runs, but the overall direction is exactly what I was hoping for.

The Takeaway

Seeing these two graphs together makes all the early mornings and tired evenings feel worth it. It’s no longer just a feeling, it’s data. I’m nervous, for sure, but looking at this proof of progress, I also feel ready.