Okay, this week’s post is much earlier than usual, but I ran my second 5K today and I just have so many reflections that I want to get this all down while it’s still fresh! First of all, I beat my last 5K time by 44 seconds. Okay, it’s not a huge difference, but it was faster! Progress, not perfection, right?? I was pretty happy to beat that time, even if only by seconds. :)
Of course, this 5K was as much a learning experience as the first, so here are some new lessons I learned today (or in the case of the first, had to relearn!):
- Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. I did better with that this time around, but I still needed more! Thankfully, there were water stations at every mile marker so I managed to not get sick from dehydration, but you can bet I’ll drink even more before the race on July 4!
- As much as I hate going over my calorie allowance, I really need to eat more than normal the day before a race. I kind of thought that because this was just a short 5K I wouldn’t really need to do any of the carb loading that longer distance runners do, but the nasty case of the shakes I got as I was sitting down to brunch with my family says otherwise. My blood sugar was really, really low and I had to drink a portion of the orange juice my husband had ordered before I stopped shaking.
- Hills are still a humbling experience. I dealt with them better this time around, but only marginally. The last mile or so was mostly uphill and had it not been for an inspiring moment in that last mile I’m not sure I would have finished as quickly as I did. I will be doing whatever I can to get out and train on hillier terrain for the remainder of the summer!
- And speaking of that last mile...moments of inspiration can come when you least expect them. I was getting really, really tired as I entered the last mile of the race. At that point I had started to chant “run till your done” in my head over and over again, but I was afraid I was about to hit the proverbial wall. And then, suddenly, the pace car for the half marathon passed me on the left, and 30 seconds later the first place runner in the half-marathon blew by me. He was so fast and ran like a gazelle, and I don’t even have words for what I felt in that moment. A year ago I might have felt intimidated to be sharing the course with such an athlete, but that’s not what I felt today. I was just so inspired by his example, and suddenly that last mile didn’t seem quite so daunting, regardless of the uphill. I even ran a little faster after that point. I found out a little later that the runner was 2004 New Zealand Olympiad Nick Willis, and he ran the half marathon in just over an hour today. Awe-inspiring! I’m really grateful for the much needed inspiration I received in that moment. It was a moment I’ll not soon forget.
There were also little moments that just added to the brilliance of the day. The folks at the water stations were handing out heart-felt encouragement along with refreshment. When it became obvious towards the end of the race that I was really struggling to keep up the pace, strangers on the sidelines began to assure me that I could make it.
And finally, my mom and dad took me out to brunch after I finished, and the waitress came to our table with six glasses of water. My mother pointed out that there were only five of us at the table, and the waitress gave her a sunny smile and replied “I figured your runner could use an extra glass.” I thanked her profusely and did my best to not burst into emotional tears, because I realized in that moment that I’d turned another important corner in my journey. When she’d called me a runner I hadn’t thought to disagree with her at all. I think I might have disagreed two months ago, but today I didn’t. Now I truly do think of myself as a runner, and for me that’s a huge step in the right direction.
I can’t wait to run another race.
No comments:
Post a Comment