A Successful 5K

I want to thank you all for being so patient. I know many of you have been wondering how my first 5K went, and I have been meaning to get this post put together. I have just been so incredibly busy. The weekend completely wiped me out. The kids are starting school this week and I’m trying to get organized. I finally just tossed the majority of Logan’s kindergarten papers from last year. Oh mama get yourself together! I also want to say thank you to you all for being so supportive. The comments, emails, and messages have truly meant a lot to me. You’re encouragement really helped in my training and reaching my goals.

So the race, Finish For A Guinness… it was a success for both myself and the Christopher Stone Fund and ALS Association. Now I didn’t really have a training plan like Couch to 5K or anything like that. I just made time for myself to run. I would run a couple of miles two or three times a week. If I didn’t feel like running I would just do a quick interval mile with sprints. Get it done quick. I even had a few weeks there where I failed to make time to train. What really got me going was seeing myself improve. That was the big kicker. That was the motivating factor for me. Completing my two miles in under 20 minutes. It got me pumped up and excited. The goal I set for myself was to complete the 5K in 30 minutes. That’s what a truly wanted. A 10-minute mile for my first race; a reasonable goal.

So, how did I do? I did it. 30:15.

Now for what I learned. Look at the course beforehand and bring a watch! I passed the 1 mile marker at 10:03. Perfectly on target. I kept trucking. I was inspired by so many people out there. People pushing carriages, one man in a wheel chair, kids, people of ALL ages. I kept my feet moving. Up the hills. I just kept going. Not sure on how to pace myself I kept looking for that 2 mile marker. That 2 mile marker that never seemed to appear. I started to slow my pace a little to be sure I could make the three mile trek. Little did I know as I turned the corner, I was at the end! I could have finished with a better time had I known! Lesson learned.

The absolute highlight was seeing my four boys and my parents cheering me on. The best cheering section EVER!