Why am I still such a headcase? I woke up last Saturday morning and straight up did NOT WANT TO get up. I waited till the absolute last minute to get out of bed and geat ready. Why? HEADCASE.
But I got up and rushed to get to the park to run the race. For those of you who know me personally, I like to think that I know how to safely drive at faster speeds to get where I need to go sometimes. With that said, I am semi-proud but really not at how good of time I made it to the park that should have taken me at least 5 minutes longer to get to than it did...
But. Because of my above mentioned teleportations skills, I was able to take a minute and enjoy the scenery. I did some quick yoga and had some moments to myself by Lake Norman to pull myself together. Once again, I may or may not have shed a tear or two on my drive...who am I? I don't cry! I need to get this checked out. Something must be wrong with my eyes. Overactive tear-ducts when under self-induced stress? Likely diagnosis.
But guys. Look at this picture FREAKING GORGEOUS. And it helped me get my mind set for the race. Too bad it didn't help my body....
My tush was still twitching a little but I felt good. I met up with the girls I was running the race with and we warmed up. Hindsight: I shouldn't have done such a long warmup. I actually compete better & run faster when my legs aren't as "loose." Something I need to remember for my next 5k.
I was all taped up with my standard PURPLE KT TAPE! My knee and feet were set. I was loose. I was ready to go. However, my back wasn't. Approx 1200yd into the race my lower back seized. One of my friends was just behind me at this point and she saw me grab my back. Following the race, she mentioned it and how I slowed up (and she passed me..) So even she knew something was up. I slowed my roll. A lot. Until my back relaxed and when I tried to pick my pace back up again, the darndest thing happened: IT SEIZED AGAIN! I wouldn't let myself stop but I knew I had to drop my pace slower than my 5k pace. Which really made me mad.
People started passing me and I was no longer passing people. It should be humbling (or so I've been told) but I hate it. I can't stand it. (This often transfers over to my highway driving... whoops). But I knew that if I wanted to finish the race I had to keep steady. At the 1.25 mile area my tushy started to cramp and twinge too. This made me angrier and I couldn't use that energy for my run because I tried and had to once again, drop my pace. I finished the race. I somehow managed to muster up enough energy to fly into the coral with what I felt looked like beautiful strides. I also almost passed out because at this point the awesome area between my shoulder blades (thoracic spine..) were starting to lock up. YAY.
To describe the feeling: my back went numb. My muscles seized. They tingled like my arm/hand/shoulder does with the nerve issues I have from the car accident. It felt like heavy bug legs were crawling all over me. And because my reaction to pain is not normal, It wasn't that it hurt. In fact, there wasn't pain. But I knew something was wrong. After years of running, swimming, and being an all around athlete, I've gotten to know my body. I don't run with music/headphones for this very reason. I need to be able to listen to my body. My breathing. My thoughts. My everything while I'm doing what I do. Sometimes I wish I actually felt pain but I'm also thankful for my tolerance to pain even though I would probably listen to my body more if I felt pain like a "normal person." Ramble.
My time? I think it was a 13:40? I was shooting for a 12 flat. I can do a 12 flat 2 mile. My split for 1.75 miles at the St Patricks day relay I ran was 11:50. And I had 3 WHOLE LAPS LEFT TO DO. That's how I know I could have done 12 flat. BUT ANYWAY!
Wanna know some cool things about this race?
- The Top 10 overall Male AND FEMALE winners all received cash prizes.
- Swaggarific race swag! DeFeet Socks & a killer Relentless Running shirt were in the race pack!
- The race was put on by Anthony Famiglietti. The 2 time Olympic runner. He's an amazing guy and glad I had a chance to talk to him after the race and hear about his future running plans. (click his name for more information about him and & company, Reckless Running)
- There are a lot more awesome things about this race but back to my race...
By this point I conceded that I wasn't going to win any prize money. My time was not great. It was just an overall crappy run. I knew the girls I ran with all won prize money and placed top 10 and I was so excited for them! They're amazing! We were all standing there waiting for Anthony to announce the winners.
.....
 |
| OH HI PRIZE MONEYS! |
I was in complete shock. I'm glad I didn't wimp out. I'm glad I got my tush out of bed and made it to the race.
It's not always about our time when it comes to a race. We all want PR's but there's nothing wrong with shooting for a top place but not a top time. Right? I'm starting to realize this.
The girls I ran with all placed top 10 and all won some prize money! Someone actually came up to us at the end and asked if that's what we do... "go around and run races, placing, & winning all the prize money.." This was my first time but it wasn't theirs! (OH, and they're all Iron {wo}man! Who had a 50 mile bike ride to do after the race... They're kind of absolutely amazing and I'm so glad I met them!
 |
| The girls and me with Anthony Famiglietti! |
IT'LL HAPPEN!
I would like to run longer races but I have a plan and I have goals.
5k PR (20 or lower)
Then I'll increase mileage of races up through 10ks
Then up to Half Marathons.
I'll eventually look into full on Marathon's but for now I want to embrace my speed.
I have the rest of my life to slow down and run for hours at a time. One of the girls above reminded me of this!
I will not let this one bad race set me back like I did in the past.
I'm still technically 3-3 with my races.
I'm shooting for 4-4 next!
This is my time. I am who I want to be.
No comments:
Post a Comment