My First 5k is this Sunday

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Believe it or not, race day is upon me (Sunday. Sunday. Someday?)

I decided a few months ago to man up and train for the Race for the Cure 5K here in Lansing. I opted for the Couch to 5k program, although I’ll confess I didn’t really advance too far in the program.

But, I still ran once or twice a week and stuck to the run/walk system, and adjusted it on my own to challenge myself.

Had a bit of a panic last weekend when I used a new pedometer on my route. When I looked at it after I was done, it read in the neighborhood of 2,400 steps. Thinking (foolishly) at the time that 1 step = 1 ft. and 5,280 ft. = 1 mile, I was worried.

“Sweet Mother of Batman, I’ve only been doing less than half a mile this whole time?!”

I feared for Sunday.

Then, thanks to some quick Google-sleuthing, I saw how wrong I was. I had actually run a mile or so–but, then used Google Maps to track my route and saw that it was actually a little over two miles. I need to calibrate my pedometer to my stride length according to the manual, which makes sense, as everyone walks/runs different.

Today I ran my last training run, as I want to be well rested for Sunday. I tweaked my route so that I was, at last, running a full three miles. I was feeling the burn toward the end, but I sucked it up and finished. Time: 26:43

Not bad. I’ll take it. My personal goal for Sunday is 30 min. or under. I’m willing to confess that my route could have been just shy of three miles, as Google Maps is anything but infallible, but it is still a good guideline.

Last weekend I also bought my first ever pair of running shoes, and I quickly noticed the difference. Reading about the safety aspect in Jef Mallet’s book, Trizophrenia, really convinced me to make the investment. I’m glad I did. I highly recommend Jef’s book. Sure, it is about triathlon, but it was inspirational for me, as I was just starting a very active sport.

Heck, by the end of the book I was ready to take part in a triathlon, and I don’t even own a bike. The Hawk Island Triathlon intrigues me, and I hear it is very beginner friendly. But, it is less than two months away and there is no way I’d be ready in time (see the aforementioned lack of a bike). Maybe I’ll think about it for next year. It would be a good Bucket List addition. Jef’s mantra is more or less ‘who cares if you are last? at least you were there.’ Inspiring words.

Today’s run did me a world of good. I was stressed and had a lot on my mind. Going for a run (and being outside in the sun) hit the spot. I felt great afterward.

Although I don’t know what helped more, the run or my post-run chocolate milk.

Looking forward to Sunday!