Emily will be participating in the 10K on October 18th and sharing her workout and training experience here.
Week 5
I completed my second half marathon on Saturday and every
thought, bite, sip, and move I made this week was with the race in mind. If I were smarter, that would have been how I
prepared the past few months, but apparently I enjoy a little pressure. Truthfully, I would have dropped down to the
5k option of this race if it weren’t for my two friends who were also
running. It was the first half for both
of them and I hated to upset our running group, even though a 5k would have fit
perfectly into my Go Commando 10k training schedule. My first half was in 2010 and it was taken me
4 years to even think about completing another one. It is just not a distance that I enjoy,
although I do enjoy a great after party and celebration dinner!
On Tuesday before the race, I had some unexpected free time
with my 2 year old so I ended up doing an easy 3 mile run with the jogging
stroller. “Easy 3 mile run” was not in
my vocabulary a few short months ago, but Boot Camp, plus the Saturday running
group, has helped get me to that point.
That same evening was Boot Camp where we focused on legs and
abs. We did some team and partner
exercises, including relays and sprints.
Cue the alert about the state of my legs on Saturday! I needed as fresh of legs as I could get to
trump the mind game. I may have
considered out loud not attending boot camp on Thursday before the race, but
Courtney nipped that in the bud. She
promised we wouldn’t be doing leg exercises on Thursday and that there is a
method to her madness and I’d be ready for the half marathon.
True to her word, Thursday was an arm and ab day with a few
laps thrown in for good measure. She and
the other boot campers and running coach were so encouraging about the race. They even sent me a fun surprise at work on
Friday. I’ve never been so excited to
see a foam roller in my life!
Friday was the race expo and packet pick-up. I resisted the urge to drop down to the 5k,
mainly due to the decrease in calorie burn that would occur and ruin my
celebration dinner plans. Sorry, running
friends who are excited about your first half.
It’s all about the calories now.
On Saturday, we left Clarksville at 5:00am for the 7:00am
start time. I knew the course had
changed since 2010 to a less hilly route, but I didn’t realize how many hills
were still included. I got caught up in
the race day excitement and energy and the first 9 miles went by quickly. 9 miles?
Went by quickly? That is crazy
talk!
I was able to keep a consistent pace, until I hit THE WALL. The last 4 miles were brutal. Painful.
Awful. I needed a taxi. I killed my pace. I kept thinking about Go Commando and how I
never wanted to race again. I was
rehearsing my speech to Courtney about dropping down to the Go Commando
5k. Or even just not showing up, which
is so not my style, but I can make exceptions.
Then, I crossed the finish line and it’s pretty much like the doctor
placing your baby on your chest. You
forget all the pain and are so proud of your baby, or your medal. Take your pick.
I finished 13.1 for the second time! I will finish Go Commando 10k in three weeks! The Boot Camp Challenge and I have got this!
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