Kiss Me I'm a Runner - 5K Run
Week Leading Up to the Race
The week before the race was an interesting one. I hadn’t trained once during the week because my daughter had been sick. We had gone to three doctors, including one specialist. She missed three days of school, and my job is to be a parent first and an athlete after that; so I didn’t train.
There were days throughout the week I thought about just hopping on the treadmill and going for a short run, or hopping on my bike on the trainer, or lifting some weights to at least get something in because I felt like a waste of space and extremely lazy. It wasn’t until a friend reminded me, that “[You’re] not lazy!!! You’re a MOM!” “An awesome mom…It shows.” I needed that reminder. Because I was spending time up at night, going to doctors’ offices, and reassuring my daughter that she was going to be okay.
It was amazing how much time I had when I didn’t workout and/or take naps, on top of everything else. (I’d like to insert here that my kids now refer to me as a zombie; both because I’m always tired or sleeping. If they ever train like I do, they’ll understand.)
Race
The morning of the race it was cold. It was supposed to be in the mid 40s, but it was in the mid 20s, and SUPER windy, with a few snow showers! (That’s what happens in March in PA.) I knew the course was pretty flat, and I wanted to work on my running form and try to pick up speed and maybe get a personal best. (I know, these races are supposed to be for training, but I have to add a little competition with myself in them too.)
It was the last running race I was going to be able to participate in with my friend Laura in PA because she was moving back to her hometown in NY. (She and I are going to race my second 70.3 distance in Niagara Falls, Canada in September and hopefully my first full Ironman next year together [thinking IM Maryland] - and maybe a few other races here and there — I do have a place to stay in NY now.)
She and I stayed next to the only building that was available - to avoid the wind as long as we possibly could — I’m talking until about a minute before the start gun went off to try to stay warm. Then we lined up and off we went. We know that each race is our own, and don’t actually run side-by-side with each other. We start in the beginning, and wait for each other at the end. If we see each other on the course we give each other high fives or some form of acknowledgement, which is what we did here. We run at a close pace to the other, but never want to hold each other back depending on how each of us is feeling that particular day. We are perfect racing buddies. I’m gonna miss her!!
Now it is a St. Paddy’s Day run, which means several people were wearing green, but not just any green, decorative green skirts, kilts, headbands, scarves, face paint, hair paint, hats, lights, necklaces, pants, shirts and anything else you can think of with that could have decorations on them. It was super fun to see and be a part of. (I only had multi-colored plaid green pants - nothing too exciting.) There were two runners carrying full-sized flags, another runner with a dog - maybe a German Shepard, I don’t remember. (I did get to pet him before the race - SUPER important!)
As all the green dispersed through the starting gates, most people were laughing and having a good time, including me. I wasn’t laughing necessarily, but I was having a good time. I was just going along remembering that I needed to use the larger muscles groups in my legs - glutes and hamstrings, not my calves as much, and keep my core strong to keep my balance and upper body steady. I’m a mid-foot striker, but every now and again I wanted to strike on my toes, just so I could get the feel for it during a race situation.
The course really is fast and flat. There may have been a slight “hill” at one point, but it didn’t bother me. I used my toe-strike, my glutes and hams, and swung my arms on it - and I really paid attention to my form. I know I don’t cross my arms when I run, but I also don’t pick my knees up enough, so I was trying to do that more, and I think I was successful (I was looking at the pictures at the end of the race and I could see my knees were higher than they usually are, which is why I was making this assessment.). I also think I used my toe-strike a little too much because my calves hurt for three days after the race - two days they hurt so much I still couldn’t walk correctly going down stairs. Oops; always learning.
By the end of the course, I still felt strong and I was still able to focus on all of the things I wanted to do.
Two reasons I really wanted to do this race:
I have raced this course a few times previously and I’m familiar with it, which means I can compare my times and feel pretty confident knowing how my running is coming along. I did exceed all my previous times on this and other courses - I got a personal best!
It is a flat and fast course, which means I can work on my form in a race setting - it gives me some confidence. I have a few races coming up that have a greater elevation for a longer period of time, so I’m looking forward to them to see where how my progress is coming along from last year on a more difficult course. I love to see progress - me vs. me. (Especially since one of the races - the only one - I competed in during this time of year last year.)
And that’s what it’s all about: me vs. me. And I have to remember that. I’ve come a long way in 8 years since my stroke. I plan on going much farther. And yes, I do get competitive with others, because that is my nature as an athlete. But that will come - right now, I need to be competitive with myself.
And because it was still a training day I went home and cycled for a couple of hours on my trainer. Needless to say my legs were jelly the next day for my 5-hour tri-clinic, but I wasn’t missing that! My training is all about embracing the suck, and sometimes that means enduring some soreness.
Results
Kiss Me I’m a Runner 5k (3.1 miles)
Course time: 32:35 minutes
Pace: 10:29 min/mi