MY FIRST EVER 5K (3.2 miles) on April 7, 2012 in Durham, New Hampshire! It was fun on this bright and crisp morning and I was pleased with what I did. My time was 25:22 and my average pace per mile was 8:09. I was actually surprised when I got to the first mile mark and the times were called out; the guy shouted, “8” (minutes) and I was surprised! In training I have been running at more of a slower pace so I knew now I was running faster than usual. By mile two, they called out “16:04” and I knew I was keeping to a similar pace despite a couple hills between. That was exciting! There were several hills added to the challenge of the course and overall, I felt that push and I kept going. Throughout it all my knees felt fine and I feel so proud I did it!
The cross training since February that I’ve been doing has been a true benefit (indoor cycling twice per week and recently outdoor cycling, the swimming at least once per week and the gradual increase in LSD running (long, slow, distance). I also joined a track group at the college at the beginning of February, doing speed work drills each Wednesday (such as 4 x 800 meter sets or various ladder drill workouts). What a great group experience this has been! It’s great to have others to run with and challenge yourself, otherwise I don’t know if I’d do such drills on my own! We did most of our sessions on the indoor track and recently have taken them outdoors with the better weather. So with this 5K race accomplishment I’m excited to keep moving forward!
I have taken the next step for my goal of completing at least 1 sprint triathlon this year by officially signing up: Saturday July 14, 2012 at the DAM Tri in Amesbury, Massachusetts: 1/2 mile Swim, 12.3 mile bike, 3.2 mile Run. So I will keep training, keep eating well (still going strong being a vegetarian for 6 months now!) and keep moving forward.
takeawayfortoday 