Now that I am signed up for a 5K and officially preparing for it, I guess that means I am all in.
As much as I tell myself to not look at my watch while I am out running, there are times when I just can’t help it. I glance down and see the pace and want to pick my feet up. Usually, the number is a reminder that I have more in the tank and I start pumping my arms a little more, lifting my feet a tad bit higher.
Yesterday’s run got me wondering about my first 5K and if I could even beat that time. It has been so long, I forgot what it was. I looked up the post on my old Tumblr blog and of course, there was a small write-up and photos. I mean, I never could post anything without all of that, right?
March 2011, Hampton, Georgia.
Here is what I wrote about the run:
I finished with a time of 38:08:38 which is about a minute less than my previous attempt. Not winning any awards with my time but that is not the point right now. The point is getting out and getting healthy. Besides, my first attempt at running since we have been on this journey to getting healthy was back on Feb. 11th and it took me 28:03 to run 1.66 miles.
I remember seeing this other runner out on the course at the start line and thinking about how much more overweight he was than I was. I somehow zeroed in on him and planned to absolutely dust him. What happened was that I gassed out way earlier than I wanted and he left me behind. He might have been bigger, but he certainly had more ability to push than I did. I learned a lesson that day to never judge anyone on competition day.
Seeing that time of 38 minutes, I feel fairly confident that barring some type of injury, I can best that today. I could probably do that right now, actually. I have walked a 5K with a weight vest in 45 minutes, so a run/jog/walk in less than 38 seems doable. I am still sticking to my guns and saying I just want to run it without walking. Then there is this part of me that wants to crush that 38 minutes and see just how fast I can actually do this. Won’t know which one will take over until race day.