I did the 2 mile fun run/walk in Albion yesterday. It started raining when the kids were doing their 1 mile run. It wasn't too bad, it stopped shortly after the 2 milers/5kers started. The temp was actually pretty good. I really wish my contacts felt better in my eyes, I had to take my glasses off and was virtually blind the whole time!
I was a bit intimidated at first with a lot of the 5k runners. Several of them finished long before I finished my little 2 mile jog. Other than about 1 minute of walking right around the water stand, I jogged the whole time, which was really what I was hoping for. I'm slower than a snail and really hope someday that will improve! Good news is, I now have a personal best!! LOL! I completed my 2 miles in 25'01" Slow, slow, slow! I'm okay with that and know that I'll get better. I was really surprised and kind of excited by complete strangers, who were obviously very experienced runners saying very motivating, encouraging things as they passed by me! That was pretty cool!
I'm glad I decided to go, even though my friend wasn't able to join me! It was worth it!! I'm going to sign off now before lightening strikes the house!
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That's great! Did this fit into the 5K program or did you use it as a substitute for something? 5K is only 3.1 miles so it isn't like you have far to get there. I guarantee you can already run 5K. Yes it will be slow but you are capable. You've drawn a line in the sand at 25 minutes for 2 miles. Now you just need to either beat the time for 2 miles or run farther in 25 minutes. Either thing is an improvement. In my mind you are not quite over the hump yet. I think this week is critical to staying on track with the program. Great achievement this weekend could be followed by a lull in activity, don't let that happen. In a couple of weeks I think you will see a noticeable improvement in every aspect. You might want to spend some time in the next couple weeks thinking about your running form. Find something comfortable but efficient. No wasted energy. This might help keep your mind off the time or distance.
ReplyDeleteRemember that even a little progress can make a big difference. Every pound you burn is 1 less pound you have to lift up on each step. Over the course of 5K, 1 pound is about 2 tons of lifts. It all counts.
It actually did fit into my 5k program. I'm in week 7 this week and have to do 3-25 minute runs. Saturday was the start of my week 7, so got that out of the way pretty quickly. The thing with the Couch-to-5k program is you can choose to run for time or for distance. I have been running time. So for week 7 it is run 25 minutes OR run 2.5 miles. Tonight I did my 2nd 25 minute run (had little boy interrupt me so had to walk for about 90 secs on 2 occasions), but went a bit further than I have been going. With warm-up and cool-down, I've been doing about 2.25 miles in 31 minutes. Tonight I did 2.52 miles in 31 minutes. I was pretty happy with that. I was doing really good until about half way through when I hit this mental wall and think OMG, I'm never going to make it another 12 minutes at this pace and freak myself out and slow down. I hate that! Except for those brief walk breaks, I didn't go under 5mph, so that was an improvement and I feel pretty good. I can't wait to drop some weight because I know that will help with running, too. I'm carrying a lot of excess baggage, but as you said, my butt looks better! I do see an improvement in that aspect.
ReplyDeleteI have been trying to concentrate on my form. If I don't I find myself very tense, so I concentrate on breathing and staying relaxed. That helps a lot. I also do a lot better when I'm outside as I'm not constantly staring at the time/distance like I do on the treadmill, but I just don't get that opportunity a lot. I've been doing a lot of reading on running and that gives me a lot of things to concentrate on and think about. Right now, I really need to focus on getting my endurance built up to consistently running 30 minutes at a time, at least 3-4 days a week.
I read a book of Jeff Galloway's. He's a former Olympian. It was on 5k/10k running. It was interesting. He recommends in his training plans, even for marathons, to always use a run/walk ratio. I've never considered it.
Anyway, thanks for the help!