My 2nd 5K! I couldn't believe I did it again! This is a race I had really been looking forward to because Duke Island Park is so beautiful and the races there are always so much fun, even when you're not running. I almost didn't run this one because I was feeling a lot of pain in my shin still and was worried I wouldn't make it (I'm telling you, 90% of working out is mental!).
We arrived at the race and signed up. I was proudly sporting my "Catch the BzzZZzz" t-shirt, compliments of New Reflections. I was immediately excited to start running. We had about 15 minutes to kill before the race started, so we stretched and warmed up, and waited to line up.
The start was a bit odd because I could barely hear someone talking about the course, etc., and then all of a sudden, I heard, "Ready, set, go!" And we were off! I didn't even have time to get nervous or anything.
This crowd was a little larger than at the Dunellen 5K, so I spent the first 1/4 mile or so dodging other people and trying to find my lane. I ended up getting stuck behind two women for about another 1/4 mile, when finally one of them dropped off and I passed her. I stayed even with the other one, and actually ran the duration of the race right alongside her. I found out she was a field hockey coach from Piscataway, and she was running with her team from the high school. I told her my story of C25K, and how two and a half months ago, I couldn't do what I was doing right now. She told me that she runs about once a year, and a little bit during field hockey practices. We were both so amazed at each other, and we formed an instant bond.
It was great to have someone to run with this time. We kept each other going and neither of us wanted to quit. I admit, there were a few times when I wanted to stop and walk, but I didn't want to let my new friend down. With about 3/4 mile to go, Evan came back to find me. I introduced him to my new friend and handed over my iPhone so he could take my picture as I was coming in to the finish line. We realized that we were doing great on time, and that encouraged us to pick it up a little bit. When we rounded the final turn, we picked it up even more and pushed it in to the finish line. I was really tired, so sprinting to the finish was harder this time. The sound of people cheering for you is such an encouraging sound and it fills you with great adrenaline. I realized when I saw the race clock that I was going to beat my time from the Dunellen 5K, and beat it I did. By two whole minutes! My race buddy and I hugged as if we had taken this whole journey together. We were so proud of each other, it was absolutely awesome. We congratulated each other, and then went our separate ways to cool down.
This was a really fun race. I really enjoyed myself. It was great to have a race buddy to keep me going and keep me motivated. I was stoked that I beat my first 5K time by 2 minutes. Oh, and that pain I was feeling in my shin? What pain? ;)
Here's me, about to cross the finish line!!
Now that the dust has settled from Saturday's 5K, I thought I'd take a moment to reflect on the race a bit.
Above all, I am extremely proud of what I have accomplished. Back in early July, I would have laughed in your face if you had told me I was going to run a 5K in two months. I never would have thought that I could make it this far this fast.
Running the 5K race was such a tremendous accomplishment for me.
Consider the following:
- Two months ago, I could barely run for 1 minute
- I have never run a 5K in my life
- Earlier in the week before the 5K, I had pretty much decided that I was not going to run it because I wasn't ready
- I wasn't technically finished with the C25K program (I skipped over Weeks 7 and 8)
I ran about 13-minute miles during the race, but all things considered, I'd say that's pretty darn good. I wasn't trying to win, I was just trying to finish. From here on out, I can focus on improving my time and becoming an even better runner. (I even treated myself to a new pair of running shoes...I think I deserve it, don't you?)
I had been to plenty of 5K races before, but I had never run in one. I didn't really know what to expect. I knew that there would be lots of people. I knew that there would be people who were WAY better at running than I was (and I was OK with that). I knew that it was going to be harder than anything I've ever done. That was about the extent of my knowledge on the matter.
As I said, when they said "Go!" I had a quick moment of panic, realizing that I was running a race, and I had to finish. It was too late to change my mind. I had so many thoughts running through my head during the race. I can't even tell you what songs I heard...I barely even remember that I was listening to music at all. I had no idea where the mile markers were, so I never knew how far I had gone, and how far I still had to go. I didn't even know what 3.1 miles felt like because I had never done this before...ever.
My thoughts changed rapidly from "Just keep going," to, "That's a pretty house," to, "I wonder how far 'till the end?" I thought about my whole journey up to this point. I thought about Oma (my grandma). I thought about all the people in the world who can't run. Throughout the whole thing, I just kept telling myself not to give up and not to stop.
A few people passed me during the race: a woman who stopped to walk a few times and still beat me; an older man who appeared to be speed-walking instead of running; and a woman running with a stroller. That discouraged me a little bit, but I kept reminding myself that there were still people behind me, so that made me feel better.
When I finally reached the finish line, it felt so good to hear people cheering for me - even though I was one of the last people to finish. I was overwhelmed with emotion. I was crying, I was laughing, I was proud... I let out a big "YES!" when I crossed the finish line. I had done it. Compared to all the "good" runners, I did terrible, but compared to myself, I did awesome. I was surrounded by people who love me and support me, and it felt great.
And so, with that...I leave you with this:
Saturday. Run the Dunellen 5K!
My Wednesday run was so successful, I decided to skip ahead and go for the 5K today! I am so proud of what I have been able to do during these past 8 or so weeks. Think about that...just two short months ago, I was scared to run for even 1 minute, and today, I ran a 5K. This has been my dream for over 10 years. I have always wanted to be a runner, and now I can proudly say that I am!
The race started and I had a split second moment of panic where I said, "Holy cow, I am running a 5K. This is it. I can't turn back and quit, I have to do this." I quickly shoved that thought out of my mind and just kept going. My goal was to finish the race and not stop to walk at any point. I was determined.
I reached the 1-mile point at 11 minutes. "OK, I'm not doing too bad," I thought. But then I realized, I still had 2 miles to go. Thankfully it was nice and cool and breezy out, so I wasn't dying from heat exhaustion. I pretty much ran alone for most of the race. A whole ton of people passed me, and there were a handful of people behind me. I actually liked it that way. I could just be myself and keep my own pace and run the way I was used to running.
During the 2nd mile, Evan came back to find me and ran the rest of the way with me. I was definitely slowing down a lot, but I was NOT going to stop to walk. I was playing the "song game" in my head. Anytime a new song came on, I would say, "OK, just run through till the end of this song." Then the next song would come on and I would say it again. I just wanted to keep going.
I rounded the final corner to the home stretch. I couldn't believe it...I was almost there! I had a little moment where I ran past my grandma's old house and started to cry. I blew her an imaginary kiss and then headed for the finish line. Some of the kids from the Dunellen cross country team saw me coming in and ran back to meet me. They ran in with me and kept me going. I saw my time slowly reaching 40 minutes and I wanted to get less than that so I sprinted to the finish line.
My final time? 39:52. I don't care how good or bad you think that is. I achieved my goal: I finished, and I didn't stop to walk at any point. It was great having people cheering for me and keeping me motivated. I cannot believe I just ran a 5K. I cannot thank you all enough. Everyone who has read this blog, supported me, cheered me on, encouraged me...THANK YOU. I could NOT have done it without all of you.
So, I guess the question now is, am I going to keep running? HECK YEAH!!!
Wednesday. Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then: Jog 1 mile (or 10 minutes); walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes); jog 1 mile (or 10 minutes).
Jogging two days in a row? Look at me go! (Hey, that rhymed!) Anyway, a funny thing happened to me while I was running...I had left my phone in silent mode, and when it's on silent, you can't hear the voice commands from the C25K app, it only vibrates when it's time to start walking or jogging. I didn't realize I had done this, so I just kept running. I had my phone in my shirt pocket, so I couldn't even feel it vibrate. I got to what I thought was about the 1-mile mark, and I hadn't heard the voice command to start walking yet. I shrugged it off and kept running. I started to feel like this 10 minutes was lasting a long time, which is when it hit me that my phone was still on silent. I turned off silent mode, and within about 30 seconds I heard, "Begin running," which meant not only had a run through the first 10-minute run, but also through the 5-minute walk, and this was the prompt for the second 10-minute run!
Well, I wasn't about to stop and walk now! I kept going. Granted, I did slow down a bit at some points, but I didn't stop running. Along the way, I saw two adorable little boys standing on their front porch. They waved and smiled at me, and I waved back and asked if they wanted to come with me...they didn't :(
I couldn't believe I was doing what I was doing. I ran for 25 minutes without stopping! The last time I tried to do this, I nearly passed out from the pain and the heat, and I couldn't do it without stopping to walk. I had the biggest grin on my face and I was so proud of myself. I felt on top of the world. Hmm, maybe I'll run that 5K this Saturday after all...
Tuesday. Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then: Jog for 5 minutes; walk for 3 minutes; jog for 8 minutes; walk for 3 minutes; jog for 5 minutes.
Today I had a unique opportunity to run in an entirely new place. I had an eye doctor appointment in Watchung, so I wasn't too far from Watchung Park. The loop around the park is exactly one mile, and there's a pretty lake there too.
I was excited to run there, just for a change of scenery. Heck, I was just excited to run! I knew there would be some hills, so it would be an extra challenge. My eye doctor was quite the gabby type, so I started a lot later than I thought I would. But let me say, I am loving this cool weather! What a difference from the sweltering heat of the summer!
For some reason I had some trouble with the C25K app at first, but it straightened itself out and I was on the run! It felt good. I was happy, I was confident, and I was having fun. There were a LOT of other people at the park, so the pressure was on!
During the part where you're supposed to run for 8 minutes, I had a moment where I thought, "I should just keep going when the 8 minutes is up. I can run through the 3-minute walking part, then just keep going through the 5-minute jogging part." There was a brief moment where I really thought I could do it. But I psyched myself out, and when the 8 minutes was up, I stopped to walk. A big part of me wanted to start running again, and I suppose I probably should have. Thinking of running in several minute-long "spurts" is much less scary than thinking about running 20 minutes non-stop. When I go running tomorrow, I think I will do what I thought I should have done today.
Today's run was good. I felt good, the weather was beautiful, and it was just all-around good.
Here's me at the lake after I finished my run...enjoy!
Sunday.
Since it was Sunday, I decided to "do my own thing." I set a goal of running for two miles, and just decided to see how I would do.
I rode my bike to the track and started my warmup. I walked one lap around and then started running. I got about two laps around (about 1/2 a mile) and had to start walking. I walked a half lap then did two more laps running. All in all, I did complete two miles, about half walking and half running.
It was a beautiful day - nice and breezy and not humid at all. However, the sun was still pretty high in the sky and I could still feel the heat.
Next week, I think I am going to up the ante a little bit. I'm going to try running four days a week instead of three days. I did have a minor setback this week because I was sick on Thursday and Friday, but I refuse to quit. I really want to make it to the end and run that 5K.
I'll leave you with this, because this is what I was feeling today:
Wednesday. Brisk five-minute warm-up walk, then: Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes); walk 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes); jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes).
Today I had extra fuel for my fire because today is the NY Giants home opener against the Dallas Cowboys! I had all the memories of the Superbowl and the Giants' spectacular 2011 season swirling in my head as I ran. I'm so excited for football season, and I couldn't wait to finish up the workout and get to the game! Thinking of all that helped me to run just a little faster and work a little harder.
It was hot and muggy out today so the air was extra thick. When it's like that, it is so hard to breathe, so unfortunately working out is not much fun. But as always, I tried to stay positive and pressed on.
Allow me to side-bar for a moment. My mother-in-law got me this great t-shirt, which I just love. The design on the front looks like this:
I think that is absolutely hilarious! Maybe that would help me become a better runner if I strapped a piece of bacon to my forehead!
So what motivates you? I know lots of people are motivated by their families, or their health, or just a desire to get out and do something. What keeps me going is that this is the first time in a long time that I am doing something for myself. Ever since my wedding, I stopped really caring about my eating habits, my weight, and working out. That eventually caught up to me and brought me to where I am now. I wanted to feel sexy again. I didn't want to get depressed every time I tried on clothes. I didn't want to have to keep throwing out clothes I already had because they didn't fit. That's why I said, I am fed up. When I run, I feel free. I feel on top of the world. Granted, half the time I am gasping for air, (and I probably don't look very sexy), but I never stop. When I run, I run by my own rules. I go where I want to go. I celebrate personal victories. It's all mine.
I may not have met the goal of being able to run the Dunellen 5K, but that's OK. I met the goal of getting out there and getting more exercise. People are telling me I look great, so it must be working! Even if it takes me another year to finally run a 5K, at least I got out there. I am a runner now. That is something that I can definitely be proud of.
