This race put me back in my place.

Part of running is remembering to enjoy the journey.  Much like yoga, the destination is the journey. My joy in running is about learning to enjoy the tiny victories and push myself just enough to keep moving forward, without pushing farther than you’re ready for.

This weekend I was feeling great and strong going into Saturday’s 5k.  I was cocky. I thought… 3.1?  I can do 3.1 in my sleep.  My short runs these days are 4.  What’s a 5k going to do to me?

So, I set unrealistic expectations and unrealistic pace goals.  I wanted to hit 10 minute miles.

I was racing around the area of town I grew up in, so there was no fear of not knowing the roads or the area of the course. When we got to the race site, it was colder than I thought it would be and there was quite a bit of downtime between packet pick-up and race start.

Sidenote: I was very lucky to have my husband running this one with me, and promising not only to stick by my side, but push me when I needed it.

I started out hard and fast, and ran my first mile in just over 10 minutes.  And then, just as I hit the first mile, I couldn’t breathe.

I did too much, too fast, and learned very quickly that endurance training is not speed training.  So, I started gasping for air.  My lungs were full of junk as I slowed for the first water stop.

My husband helped me calm my breathing for a minute or two and get everything under control.  We started back up running after the water stop and I went probably too slow for this mile as I tried to catch my breath again.  I caught my breath and picked up the pace again only to have to slow myself again for the 2nd water stop and my husband helped me calm my breathing again.  Then we got ready to push it for the final mile.

Three miles never felt so long.

I was huffing and puffing for the last mile as we pushed it out and tried to kick it up the last quarter mile.  I made modest achievements in trying to finish strong (my prior worst running trait) and we kicked up through the end.

A very cool feature of the race was they announced for the crowd as we crossed the finish line.

We finished in what is my second fastest 5k time, which I was happy with.  But, I was in pain at the end of this race and I learned my training lesson.  Endurance training is not speed training and just because I can run double digit mileage, doesn’t mean I can run shorter distance much faster.  After the race we walked around a bit and I tried to let go of the crankiness that had built up over my failed expectations.  We went off about our day and later found out that we had indeed crossed another milestone… despite my personal missed expectations, I placed for my age group (2nd place)!  It was a very small race, but still pretty cool.

When I started running I said, specifically, that I was never going to win any races, that’s just me acknowledging my journey and knowing that’s not where my expectations lie.  That said, it was a very happy milestone the day that I not only didn’t come in last, but was shown another small victory for all my hard work.

Next up is my second half marathon, in about four weeks.  I’ve got two more long runs ahead of me and three weeks of steady racing before the big day.  I’m nervous and excited, but I also feel strong as I continue on this running journey.

October Race
3.1 Miles
11:42 pace
36:15 total time