Last one...

I promise that this will be my last post whining about how tired and sore I am after the 5k...

I really can't believe that I'm this sore. Not just my legs, but my back and abs, too. I feel like I went to the gym and killed myself with free weights and weighted crunches for a couple of hours. It's crazy!

Brad has a good point - I've never run that hard for that long and that's only the second time I've run outside on pavement. When you put it into perspective, it's understandable that I'm this sore.

I'm done with the whining.

Now it's back to work and more sales tax stuff...

I ran... Now I'm tired...

I made it through the 5k and I'm still alive. Yea!

The alarm went off at 5:00 this morning. I hit snooze twice then got up and woke Kyle up. He was groggy (what 9 year old wouldn't be at 5:30 in the morning?), but he was ready to go in about 5 minutes, which was great. (I'm so proud of him!) He was tired, but excited for me. When I dropped him off at Ryan's apartment he gave me an extra big hug and told me that he hoped I came in 1st place. I didn't bother trying to explain to him that it will be a few years before I'll come in 1st in any event like this, if at all. I figure that it's the thought that counts.

I made it to Brad and Jenny's in time to have a cup of coffee (with my orange juice) and help them get the kids up and going. I'm not sure I was much help, but I was there... We were very smart and took an alternate route to get to the race, found parking without difficulty and laughed at all of the people still waiting several miles down the Interstate to even get to the exit, much less to get to the race.

The long and short of it is that I finished (thanks to Brad for pushing me) in 33 minutes and seven seconds. Yea! Not bad for my first 5k...

This is crazy...

Okay, I realize that everyone's first actual race is nerve racking, but this is crazy! I've been jittery (and that's not the coffee, this is actual jitters) for two days now and the race isn't until Sunday. I wasn't this nervous when I was going into labor with my son.

One of my coworkers who has been a runner for many years and has run in quite a few races assures me that this is completely normal and that I won't be able to sleep on Saturday night. I still think that it's crazy...

Wow, I made it...

Okay, so it was only 12 minute miles, but I ran a solid three miles last night. Only two more weeks to the 5k race, and I think I'll make it.

I just read Miss Jennifer's blog and she ran a 8:13 mile over the weekend. Wow! Very exciting/inspiring. I think she just became my Running Guru...

I don't know if it's possible, but I'm going to try to get down to 8:00 minute miles by next year's Race for the Cure. Maybe I'll lose some weight along the way...

Okay, back to work...

HAPPY MONDAY!! (don't worry, that's just the Starbucks talking...)

Oops... I forgot to start training...

I'm planning on running (yes, actually running) in a 5k on August 10th (Susan G. Kohmen Race for the Cure - breast cancer) and I FORGOT TO START TRAINING until last night. Oops! So, I did a little bit of quick research and came up with a schedule and went to the gym to do my first training session. I walked 1/4 mile for warmup, ran 1-1/2 miles at a 12 minute mile pace (the last 1/4 mile of that was at a 2% incline) and then finished out by walking another 1/4 mile. It was hard (especially the last 1/2 mile of running), but I made it through without feeling like I was going to die, which is how I would have felt after the first 1/4 mile of running last year at this time.

I will be the first to admit that I don't push myself as hard as I should when I exercise. I'm just not a big fan of pain. (I know, Mandy, it's all about mental toughness and working through it...) But, it's good to have a goal like running in a 5k. I will continue to train at a higher level after the 5k so I can improve my time in next year's race (and hopefully find other 5k races to run), but I'll get to that after I run in this one.