Women Running & Walking in Memphis 5K!

This is my pre-race smiley face.

Yesterday I ran in my second ever 5K. Actually I think I did "run" in one when I was in 8th grade. I don't feel like it really counts though. I ran in the Church Health Center's Race for Grace back in November 2008. This past week I decided to check my finishing time from that race just to have something to compare with my upcoming race. I remember doing some walking at that race, and I had absolutely no idea how to pace myself... of even that I was supposed to myself! Eek! My finishing time was 38:53. Ouch! I mean, like I said, I hadn't been running, like at all. So I guess I shouldn't be so hard on myself. I should be proud of myself for finishing, right?

Back to the recent running endeavor. Even though I signed up for the 10-week training program that was a part of the package when I registered... I honestly only attended 2 of the trainings (3 were canceled BTW.) I didn't exactly put in my time hitting the pavement on my own either. BUT... a commitment is a commitment. I figured that even if I wasn't prepared to run a 5K, maybe I could at least beat my body into submission ;) And beat it I did, jeez Louise! More onto that later though.

I showed up to Oak Court Mall at 7:30am to pick up my race number, and "swag" bag of goodies. I brought along my camera to snap some photos before the race began. It was pretty amazing to see the sea of Memphis ladies, every shape, size, color, age. It was a very "You Go Girl!" kind of an atmosphere.

Look at all that pink! I love the shirt for this race

Those raised hands represent the women who were running in their first 5K. You go girl!!!

In fact, just before the 2nd mile marker, there was a handmade sign that literally said "High five the woman running next to you and say, 'you go girl!' I totally wanted to take a picture, but I was kinda busy... ya know, in the middle of running a 5K and all.  

I had two goals for this race... the first one was to run the whole race (no walking breaks.) The second goal was to finish faster than my "PR" of 38:53 from 2 years ago. I admit, I did end up walking, BUT I didn't take my first walking break until approximately 20 minutes into the race... this was definitely a first. Yay me!

Second goal: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! 

My finishing time was 37:09!! Wahoo! AND even though I did take a walking break, I power walked it... Oprah-style! Of the 37:09... I truly think I only walked a grand total of 4 minutes! Yea I know... that's small potatoes for you folks who run a 10K or half marathons without batting your eyelashes. But for me, this was pretty exciting. I actually think I could have finished by a minute or so earlier, but just before the third mile I started feeling kind of sick. I refused to quit though, I kept running... definitely not as fast I wanted to, but I ran! I don't know if it was the freakishly-hot-at-8am-sun beating down on me, or what... I actually think I wasn't adequately hydrated. Never a good thing.

I'll spare you the details, but I think my body started to rage against the machine as soon as I finally laid eyes on the clock at the finish line. I started gagging, I literally had to cover my mouth as I finished the last 45 seconds. I definitely thought I was gonna be sick, but I ended up dry heaving after I crossed the finish line instead. Painful!

Here are the running coaches for our training sessions, handing out bright pink medals to all the finishers.



How cool are those trophies!?! I SO wish I could have qualified for one... they were pretty rad.

Check out my medal. Pretty sweet, right?

Well... you think I would swear off running after almost passing out at the finish line, right? Negatory! I decided that since I jump-started my body into this whole running thing, I'm gonna go ahead and sign up for another one... for next month! Aside from the soreness and the dehydration-induced sickness, I thoroughly enjoy the whole community of runners that I've encountered at races. Plus, it seems like every organization and their brother are hosting 5K races nowadays, so you're bound to find a cause that you'd like to support. Stay tuned to find out which race I choose and to read more about how I ACTUALLY prepare myself for this one. Cheers!


How exhausted do I look? Haha!



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