so yesterday was FINALLY the big day! i drove into waco the evening before the race, and we picked up our race packets! it was SO exciting getting my first number, racing chip, etc... even though hanging out with my wonderful friends was a huge distraction, i was still nervous about running in the morning! the longest i had run to-date was about 2.5 miles, so i had my doubts!
anyway, the morning of the race we woke up, put on our running gear, ate a piece of toast, & headed to campus. we made our way to the starting line, and before i knew it, they fired the gun, and we were off! i was running alone because my sister is WAY faster (like 8 min/miles... without any training - ugh) ... but i was okay with that. i had my ipod playing ridiculously loud, and i was pumped! it was hard at first to set my pace with so many other runners around, but after the first mile, the crowd thinned out a ton, and i found myself just chugging along at a comfortable speed.
the best part of the whole thing was that all along the race course, there were people cheering! AND i was handed more cups of water/gatorade than i can even remember! i could get used to that!
the race actually went by really fast! before i knew it, i was jogging back towards campus and looping around to the finish line! my sister was waiting for me, and i sprinted in! my time was rather unimpressive (36:41 -- i even got beat by a guy in a wheelchair!), but i honestly DID NOT CARE! i was just so ecstatic about having run the entire thing without stopping! i can definitely see how people get addicted to racing! it's such a huge adrenaline rush on top of the endorphin rush from working out! LOVED IT.
big thanks to the couch-2-5k program! if i can do it, ANYONE can do it. seriouslyyyyy!!!
36:41 is a GREAT time for your first 5K! Congrats on running the whole way. I definitely couldn't do it. By the way, I am totally determined to do a race with you. If you can't come to OKC this summer, I might be able to take a fun trip to Houston? Let me know. I'm serious. We can do another 5K or maybe even a 10K?
ReplyDeleteYAY!! way to go :) so inspired!
ReplyDeleteawesome! and just so you know, this inspired me to give the couch to 5k another go. today was only my second day at it, but it really does feel more manageable than I thought (mostly because I really dislike running...) I don't know that I'll do an actual 5k, but I like having a routine/program to follow and get me in better shape. so - thanks for the motivation! :)
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