I just started running...and running...

I'm not Forrest Gump yet...but, I ran my first 5k on Saturday and I'm pretty pleased.  I had been running 5k on the treadmill for a couple of weeks but was worried how that would translate to running outside and in a pack of people.  It was cold in the morning, like 45 degrees, and I was freaking out about how cold it was. I just layered up -wore my sleeveless running shirt, a long sleeve running shirt and a running jacket plus my sweat band over my ears and gloves to keep my fingers warm.

That's me in the red jacket at the starting lineup, just starting to jog.

 I was able to start shedding layers after about a mile and I ended up being quite comfortable, even sweaty, in just my running shirt after 2 miles.  It was a really fun run, Kat told me before I started to 'run my own race' and that was key advice. I had started to want to pass some people and I started to get winded early so I settled back in to my own pace and just ran where I could sustain my pace. It was a good plan. The last 1/2 mile I really poured it on and I was so excited to see I finished under 40 minutes - my goal was to finish under 45 minutes!! My official time was 37:24.  I finished 83rd overall (161 racers), 52nd of the women (113 women) and 19th of my 19-34 age group (35 in my group).  So that's about the middle, which makes me happy, I really just wanted to not be very last! :)

 

Such a positive experience.  I now want to start training to run a 10k.  And work on getting my 5k finishing time up there, I'd love to be able to get it under 30 minutes at some point.  Must work harder!