I didn't die

I know, I know....I'm a day late.  But better late than pregnant never, right ?! [For those of you who missed the golden girls reference, please leave this post, go here, watch the episode and then maybe I can forgive you.]

Let's get right down to it: my 5K on Saturday.

I woke up at the most insane hour of 6AM.  Thankfully I set up everything the night before because I knew I would be in zombie mode.  I dragged my feet to my car and drove to the boys place so we could take one car and also because I hate driving/parking in downtown and honestly, I don't function before 9AM.  I then spent the next hour trying to come up with every excuse in the book to NOT run.

(Sorry for the feels Dr. Who fans)

Once I got over my anxiety (and by "got over" I mean I could hold a conversation with friends without wanting to burst into tears), it was okay.  We took some fun pictures and they laughed at my shirt.  Don't hate me, but I don't actually have a good picture of it.  I was slightly worried about not coming in last in front of all my friends ! Oops !

(My eyes are closed but oh well !)

(at the starting line before I hid myself in the anonymity of the crowd)

I adore these people.  I only get as nervous as I do running around them because they are just hands down some of THE most awesome people I have ever met.  But back to my story.

Here's a quick rundown of what happened after that picture:

• Can't get a GPS signal on my watch.
• And they're off !
• "Shoot, Guess I'll just run until it picks up." (I should mention that my watch times my 3:30 run/1:00 walk intervals which it can't do when I'm trying to get the GPS to work)
• Running
• Feeling awesome !
• Nice view of downtown !
• Watch still hasn't picked up GPS
• "How long have I been running ?"
• Get GPS signal
• Start running 3:30 interval.
• "Pretty sure I'm gonna regret this when I'm done."
• "Oh, some uphill, no big - OW !"
• "Am I ever going to go downhill ?!"
• "Thank you directing traffic person !"
• My IT bands just noped the fuck out
• "I'll take 'What is Breathing' for One Million Alex."
• A montage of pain and confusion but I'm walking it off.

• "I have to be done soon"
• Brian comes backtracking and finds me.  I must have had an epic look of relief on my face because he started laughing.
• Meghan and Rita and Matt and all the awesome people show up to run with me.
• Less laughing/talking, more running.
• More Ow.
• Meghan teaches me how to breathe: instant relief
• Running fast !
• Yelling !
• Finish line !
• Run Walk quickly away from people and try not to throw up.
• Drink water and become normal again.

So in summary, I ran longer than I have in about 5 months, it hurt like hell (but I recovered almost instantly which was cool) and I finished sub 30.  When I looked at my watch it only tracked 2.6 miles which makes me figure I ran for about 8 minutes between a 9-9:30 pace before I took a walk break.  Bonus points for being able to go that long, but I feel like it would have made the whole thing easier overall if I had stuck to the original plan.

(The results)

I'm currently trying to figure out my next few races.  I've got just about 3 months to get ready for City of Oaks.  Let's do this !

Other noteworthy things of the weekend:

• Had my chiro appointment for my IT bands after the 5K - ice has been my best friend for 3 days
• Did a lot of laying around with the monsters. Mostly because I couldn't sit/stand/move without pain (BTW - so worth it)
• Finally saw Jaws for the first time ever.  Didn't freak out or have nightmares.  Major points for me.

There you have it ! I'm excited to run again tonight after taking yesterday and Sunday off to give my legs some time to recover.  Based on the 8:30 minutes I actually ran without stopping on Saturday, I'm going to see what I can actually do.  Time to start pushing my limits a little bit !

Hope everyone had a good weekend  (and a good Monday !)