My First 10K + Weigh In

Saturday morning I woke up at 4:30 and spent 20 minutes wondering what clothes I should wear. It started out 47* that morning... freeeeeezing... but was supposed to be a high of 84*. So I settled on layers and figured I could always tie everything around my waist. At 5 I kissed everyone goodbye and headed out the door. I didn't have to be there until 6:30 but it was in another town and I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time in case I got lost!

With two stops, one for a banana and one for a potty break, I got there at 6:15. Roni was right behind me. We registered at the table and then ran back to the truck to sit in the heater until it was time to get out and stretch. I forgot my camera... but managed these 'before' pics with my phone!


There were about 45-50 runners of all different ages. It was fun to see the variety. We all lined up at the starting line. I was somewhere in the middle with Roni. The whistle blew and we were off. There is one thing I learned right off the bat... when you are in a group of runners, you tend to want to run their pace. For the first mile I was way over my head. I had started off running too fast and burned out fast. I had to remind myself that this was not about how fast I finish... just that I finish. So I slowed to a walk and started my walk/jog pace.

We were running on the main highway for 3 miles and they had it coned off. I used the cones as my running incentive. I would start running at a cone and stop at the 6th cone. Walk for 6 cones and then start running again. The most distracting thing was the amount of traffic there was that morning. In these small country towns everyone drives big ole' trucks that cough out black smoke every 100 ft. After the second mile I ran a little faster just to get away from the smell of exhaust.

We rounded a corner onto a back road that headed to the lake. At this point I realized I was last. There were 5 people in front of me. .and we were all keeping about the same pace... but I was last. To make it even more noticeable... there was a police car following me. This made me sad for a minute. Of course it did... who wants to be last?? But then I remembered that I wasn't here to win the damn thing... just to finish it.

I waved at the police man and he drove up beside me.

Me: "Sorry, but I can't go any faster then this!"
Copper: "Your doing better then I could!! Keep going!!"
Me: "Thanks, but can you give me a push?"

Knowing that he was cheering me on kept me going. Every now and then he would whirl his lights and beep.... mostly to keep the back road redneck drivers from running us over, but I'd like to think it was to cheer me on!

At the beginning we were told that the water stands would be at mile 2, 4 and 5. They lied. The first one was at mile marker 2.... When I came up to the second water station I was excited because I couldn't believe we were already at the 4 mile point. That was because we weren't. A couple of hills later I saw the 4 mile marker and cursed out loud! I was expecting a 5 on that marker, not a 4! So I got a little discouraged knowing that I still had another 2 miles to go... but I kept moving.

We rounded another corner and all I saw were huge mountainous hills. Now, I should say that the 5 people that were a head of me were keeping a steady pace and we were all keeping the same distance from each other. There were 3 girls in front of me that were jogging the entire time.... which I thought was funny that I could walk/jog and still keep up with them! They were what I gauged my pace on. If they started getting too far ahead of me, I would push myself to run a little longer or pick up the pace on my walk.

Those last two miles were all uphill. BRUTAL. I thought I was going to die. At that point I was happy to have the police cruiser behind me... that way if I did pass out, at least I wouldn't be laying on the side of the road for too long! (I kept picturing that girl from BL on her 1 mile beach run).

When we hit the 5 mile marker I knew that I could do it. At least I thought I could. That last mile seemed extremely long. I expected the finish line around every bend... but nothing. When I did finally see the flags flying I was ecstatic. I picked it up and started running. I wasn't going to WALK across the finish line!! Every runner was there cheering us on... it took everything I had not to have tears running down my face as I crossed the finish line. It felt good though. I didn't give up on myself... I didn't quit because it got hard... I persevered.

I did 6 miles in 1 hour and 20 minutes.... I don't know my exact time because I didn't stick around to find out. It wasn't about the time... I did what I set out to do and I couldn't have been happier.

I did learn that you cannot chug a Gatorade right after crossing the finish line... gross!

Roni did amazing and ran it in 1 hour and 6 minutes. She's my hero! I was so glad she was there... even though she wasn't running next to me, I knew she would be there at the finish line waiting for me and that was a blessing!

I got home, soaked in the tub and then put on my shirt. Hubby took this 'after' pic for me. Next time, I really need to remember my camera.




Today's weigh in: 175 ! I'VE LOST 50 POUNDS!!!!