The race was scheduled to start at 7:30, so I got there about 6:45 (it was either that or sit home and worry about it!). I expected to be one of the first people there, but there were tons of people there already! I checked in and got my bag-o-goodies (including my first race shirt!!) and then did some walking around and light stretching. Part of me really wished I had someone there to run with, but later on I was glad I didn't because I run so slow! I really enjoyed watching all of these healthy, fit people strolling around, and it really motivated me to work harder on being fit and healthy.
I went into this race with two goals. 1: Run the whole race. 2: DON'T BE LAST! I thought those were pretty reasonable!
At 7:32, we began. I've heard over and over that one of the worst things you can do at a race is start too fast, so I really tried to keep my normal pace. It's really hard, when everyone is passing you and you see people flying ahead, but I kept reminding myself that A) it's my first race and B) I would probably end up passing some of those ambitious starters.
The first leg was uphill, so it started off tough. I did very well until I got to the 1 and 1/2 mile marker. Until then, I kept my pace and stayed focused and it was working for me. When I got to this half-way point, I grabbed some water, but didn't want to stop. Yeah. Running and drinking is NOT easy. I ended up pouring most of my water on myself (which felt fantastic) and then followed everyone else's lead and threw my cup down. (I felt really guilty about that!) After that, I had a hard time getting back into the groove. The road was long and curvy, but I could see how far I still had to go just to get to the end of this leg of the race, and it started messing with my head.
There was an older lady that I stayed pretty close to during the entire race - we kept passing each other the entire time. The words on the back of her shirt became my mantra during the last mile. It said "Fight the good fight. Finish the race. Keep the faith." from 2 Timothy 4:7. I repeated this to myself over and over and prayed that God would help me reach my two goals. (I found out later that this was my Pappa Miles' favorite verse, and it made me a little teary. I think I found my new mantra!)
When I hit the 2 mile marker and turned onto the last leg of the race, I was really hurting. Not so much my body, since I was in a decent groove by then, but it was my mind. My mind kept telling me mean things like "You can't do this because you haven't trained hard enough." or "This last hill is going to kill you, you should walk now." I ignored it for a while and just kept trucking. Finally I got to about the 2 and 1/2 mile point, and I just couldn't run anymore. I'm a little disappointed about this now, because I think it was all in my head, but it's okay. I talked to two awesome ladies in that last half mile walk and they were very inspiring. One lady said that I had inspired her to keep up the pace, so that made me feel great. She and I decided there was no way we were walking through the finish line, so at the last tenth of a mile we ran again. I will never forget the feeling of running through the end and hearing people cheer and encourage us. Most people were off resting, stretching, drinking water, but there were a few runners who stood at the finish line and cheered for every person coming in towards the end. Those people don't know how special they are!
My ending time was 43:06 minutes and I was NOT last! So I met one of my goals for this race, and now I have a time to beat for the next one!
I stayed around for the awards and was very impressed with some of the times of the winners. Once again, I felt very motivated! I felt great and very happy that I didn't cross the finish line on a stretcher, but when I got in my car, I lost it. I started crying and just couldn't stop for a while. I think it was a cross between being exhausted and being so ridiculously proud of myself for doing this. I set a goal back on April 27th when I started this training, and I reached my goal. Even when I signed up for this 5K as motivation to get me through the program, I always had a feeling I would back out. I'm SO proud of myself for sticking with it, even though there were times I didn't want to. And for those times, I'm so appreciative of my husband who encouraged me to run, and for my parents who always asked about my run, and for all my buddies who seemed interested in my progress. (Thank you to Laura who was the inspiration for doing this in the first place!)
Wow, I sound like I just won a Grammy.
Anyway, I kind of expected to find this run to be an excuse to be done with running, but I feel more motivated than ever. I want to get better, and I want to be healthy and fit like all of those runners I saw today. And I will. October 9th - UMHB 5K - Here I come!!!
(I joked with my mom that the only difference between me and those other runners is...
they probably didn't stop at Shipley's after they ran.)
I crack myself up. =)
Anyway, here are some pictures of me post-race and my number. =)
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