Mayor's 5K and me

Today was the Mayor's 5k. They Mayor's Roundup if you will. The race is run downtown which is nice because we don't do many races or runs down there.

There were a lot of turns for a 5k which may have slowed things down a bit but not by much. The weather was perfect! 48 degrees, sunny, and .....very light wind. It was a wonderful day to run a race.

My goal was a 24:24, this time is a benchmark to tell me that if I can run a 5K in 24:24 I can run a 10K, half, and marathon at a specific time. Every time I hit one of these benchmarks I feel more confident.

I've not "raced" a race since my injury in December so I was somewhat nervous, not sure I could hit my goal. I warmed up well but felt the "butterflies" more and more with each passing minute. As it got closer to the start time I began to feel nauseous, this is not good when I haven't even begun to run!

As we stood at the starting line waiting for the gun to sound I wondered if it's really worth it to feel so much pressure. "Why do you do this to yourself" I asked. Then the gun (well in this case the fog horn) sounded and we were off. I needed to stay on pace and not go out too fast which proved to be difficult. I did fairly well though and let people pass me, I knew I would get them in the end. As the first mile went by I felt the butterflies go away and I began to feel the run. Now I was in the moment. Mile one comes and I see (from my trusty Garmin) that I have run a little too fast. So I slow it down for mile two. Just enough to allow me to keep on pace but not overdo. That mile goes well, then it's the last mile. I wanted to speed up and I did, and then I felt it. I began to get nauseous. I am now yelling at myself "what the hell are you doing? Is it THAT important to you" the answer is yes. Knowing I can push past that voice and past the feeling of wanting to walk, the feeling of wanting to puke, is .... well.... for some reason important to me, it gives me a feeling of power over my inner person and the environment around me.

Then the last 5 blocks, always the most difficult. I can see the finish line which really helps me push and I buckle down, push with everything I have. I hear my coach yelling at me to push harder, a little harder, a little faster, leave it all out there. And I do. A new PR 23:45.

I immediately run to the side to gag, I've once again pushed past the limit and my stomach is showing me it's not happy with this. That's ok, a couple of gags and it's under control again. Now it's time to celebrate and cheer the others on.

My wonderful husband came out to cheer us at the start and at several points along the way, did I mention he is wonderful? I thought to myself later, this man and his support are why I am able to continue to enjoy this sport I love. Do others feel this way about their spouses? If they don't it's a shame. I can't imagine my life without him and his support for this thing I love called running.

And now it's on to see my college roomies! A weekend of catching up the years. This too was a gift from my husband. My life is good, it's an old cliche I know, but God really has been good to me.