Monday, May 18, 2009

Race Day



That's my dad and I getting ready for our big race.

In some ways, it went better than expected. In some ways it went worse.

There are lots of informational articles on runnersworld.com about race strategy and what to do or not do to your best on a race. If I had to sum them up, their tips would be:

1) Don't overeat the night before. Eat a small breakfast about an hour before the race.

2) Get a good night's sleep the night before the race.

3) Whatever you do...DO NOT start off the race too fast. Make sure you pace yourself.

Out of those three tips, I pretty much accomplished....ZERO! I didn't eat any breakfast since I was too afraid of feeling nauseous. Thanks to the Sweet Adelines (think really loud ladies who like to sing and laugh and whoop all night long) I did not get any sleep. And, I don't know, maybe it was the energy jelly beans or the crowd or the cold or the good music, but when I finished the first mile in 10:53, even though my fastest ever mile before that was 12:00, I knew I was going to be in some trouble.

Somewhere between 1.5 miles and 2 miles I had to walk for a little bit. I was pretty disappointed about that. I caught my breath and kept on running. At 3 miles, I was at 36 minutes and some seconds. I remember thinking "Wow! I could actually do this in under 80 minutes". The fastest I had ever done 6.2 miles in training was 85 minutes. I was hoping to beat 85 minutes. Beating 80 minutes seemed like a total long shot. My plan was not to stop running again.

Only my groin started to hurt. And, my legs were running out of juice. I kept trying to dig deeper. I kept trying to look for some song on the music player of mine that would help me. Miles 4.5 to the end were tough. I'm not going to lie. I had to do more walking than I would have liked. It didn't help that the race ends going UPHILL. I'm not kidding. Who does that? Who ends a race going up hill??

Besides first laying eyes on my children, I am not sure I have ever seen a more beautiful sight than the finish line. My official time: 1:19:33. Under 80 minutes. So, although I had to walk more than I would've liked, I finished under the time I thought would be nearly impossible. I averaged 12:48 minute miles.

When I was done I didn't think that it was all that much fun. My dad told me that as time wore on it would seem like it was more fun. He's right. I'm already thinking it was pretty OK and am looking forward to planning my next race!

Thursday, May 14, 2009

In Less than 72 hours...

In less than 72 hours the race will be over. In less than 72 hours I will know the answer to the question "Can I really run a 10K?".

I am not sure how will I do. I hurt a muscle around my hips when I did that 6 mile run last week. And, then after that while trying to compensate for that plan, I pulled a groin muscle. Frankly, I didn't even know ladies had groin muscles. So, last week's training was weak at best and this week, I haven't done anything at all to try and give it a rest. My groin feels better. My confidence does not. I would've like to have gone into the race with at least one more 6 miler under my belt.

It's going to be perfect running weather. Sunny, breezy, and like 50 degrees. It's going to be perfect running conditions. I'll have great music and have the company of my wonderful dad and sister. Oh and my sister's boyfriend, who I am sure is a fine, upstanding young man. I don't base this on Kristin's past choices, of course, but on the fact that he likes the Steelers and George Bush. I have good shoes, good clothes, good socks, a good heartrate monitor and (hopefully) a good hip/groin. It should go well.

I wish I had been able to train more. I wish I had lost more weight. I wish I could know if all I have done has been enough. In less than 72 hours, I will.

Sunday, May 03, 2009

2 Weeks to Go

To be perfectly honest, a large part of me never thought I would make it this far.

I mean, really. I am not the "athletic" type. Just ask the kids in grade school who picked me last for dodgeball, kickball, or any other ball game. Or the softball coach that put me in right field. Or the ski team that left me in the dust. Athletic stuff...just not me. I tried to get into running once maybe about 9 years ago. I maybe got up to like 1/4 mile. Just not me.

It IS like me to start a new "healthy lifestyle" plan and get really excited about it and then hit a roadbump or a snag and then give up and give in. That is like me. And then, once I had given up or given in, it would add to my "further proof that I will always be fat" or "further proof that I am not athletic" mindset.

This is different though.

I've hit roadbumps. I've hit snags...and I've kept going.
I've heard that voice in my head that said I could never do it...and I've kept going.
I've looked at a busy schedule that made it nearly impossible to get runs in...and I've kept going.
I've had aches and pains...and I've kept going.
I've had nearly 1 million reasons/excuses to stop...and I've kept going.

Saturday I ran 6 miles. No one is more surprised than me!