Vulcan 10-K

Some of you may know that a little over a year ago (Sept 25, 2010 to be exact - I only remember b/c its my dad's birthday!) I decided to get into a healthier lifestyle.  I have thought about blogging about it for a while now, but haven't had the nerve b/c I didn't want to sound too preachy or like I had it all figured out (I've already taken too much grief for my "motivational" pins on Pinterest!).  Stay tuned to see if I decide to share. 

So, as part of this "get healthy journey" I started running.  Last September, I couldn't run a lick.  I did my first workout which was the Couch to 5k program, as described here.  My first workout, I did 30 minutes on the treadmill, with only 8 of those minutes being at an actual jog (and at a very slow pace, might I add).  I only share my running history to give you a little perspective - a few weeks ago, I ran in my second ever race - I ran a 10-K! 

Now, prepare your gag reflex here - I actually enjoyed it.  Now, I CANNOT say this is the case for 99% of my runs - I like the results and I like the way I feel after, but I never thought I'd be one of those people who just enjoyed the run itself (and in the spirit of honesty...I'm not sure I've enjoyed a run since this run).  But, there was something about all of the people, working towards a common goal, enjoying the weather, etc.  I also liked this one much better than the 5-k - something about the distance was right.

I mentioned in a previous post that Emily Ann was trying to talk me into running the Vulcan 10-K - I decided last minute that I'd suck it up (even after my massive b-day dinner at Sumo).  I did have to do a double take when I picked up my race bib and it said my age was 28 - you have to put in your birthday and they calculate your age on race day.  Guess I'd forgotten I'd have one more b-day before race day!  :)

Vulcan Run - 2011



WAY too early - and it was really cold!



The route started and ended downtown and was pretty flat

Emily Ann and I ran together the first four miles of the race - her knee was bothering her a bit and we separated for the last 2.2 miles, but having her with me was great so I knew how to pace myself.  She has a Nike plus watch that tracks your pace while you run and that really helps - I tend to run too fast and then get winded early.  We still ended up finishing pretty close together - and they even had frozen yogurt from Yogurt Mountain at the end of the race - yogurt at 9:30 in the morning?  Don't mind if I do!

We did it!

Being new to the race world, I didn't realize they'd post your time on the Internet for all the world to see.  I might have run a little faster if I'd have known that  :)  All in all - not as fast as I was planning, but the important thing is that I did it!



So, I've sort of gotten the bug - there's a 10 mile race in January that I'm thinking about doing.  I know most people say to do a half marathon next, but 1.  That seems like a big leap to me and 2.  The timing is not as good - (mid Jan - March are really busy at work).  Again, putting my thoughts out there to have some blog accountability!  We'll see!